Before They Were Famous
by Martha and Squirrel
Summary: A Prequel to Wrongs Darker Than Death Or Night! Florence and Severus are at School, everyone you would expect is there! You don't need to have read 'Wrongs' to read this! COMPLETE (finally!)
1. The Beginning

Disclaimer: We don't own these Characters and places. (Well, we made up a couple of the people, like Heather etc…) 

She could feel the pressure of someone's eyes fixed to her person. Florence turned around just in time to catch a glimpse of black eyes staring at her before they were quickly averted. Scrutinising the face the eyes belonged to told her that she knew him from somewhere but, just as she thought she was getting somewhere, she heard her name being called.

Spinning around, she spotted Sirius Black running towards her, a grin lighting up his face. She greeted him fondly before turning back to the person with the night-eyes but, with a scowl, he had disappeared from sight. Disappointed, she tried to concentrate on the excited chatter Sirius was emitting. 

"...so, what do you think?"

"What? Sorry... say that again." Florence apologised, with a smile lighting up her bright green eyes.

"Florence! I was asking whether you wanted to get together to study later in the library..."

"Uh..." She didn't want to commit herself to being alone with Sirius. It was public knowledge that he had a crush on her and she didn't want to lead him on.

"James and Lily are gonna come!" He smiled his lady-killer smile in an effort to persuade her, but ruined the effect by waving to another girl over her shoulder. Unfortunately for him, the smile never had the effect on Florence that he would like, even if he'd paid more attention to her.

Florence pulled her hand through her thick brown hair and considered the offer for a second. "I suppose it won't hurt." She said, mock-grudgingly.

Sirius rushed off before she could change her mind. Probably to go ask James and Lily, she thought with a smile. With that thought in mind, she turned and walked to her next lesson and favourite subject: Defence against the Dark Arts.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Chewing on her dinner in the Great Hall, Florence looking around her, and caught the eye of Sirius. He waved at her, smiling his devastating smile and she grinned back. She still thought of him as a friend even though she was saddened to know he thought there could be something more than that. Carrying on her scrutiny of the Great Hall, she stopped short as she noticed someone doing a little scrutiny of his own – the black-eyed boy from earlier! She stared at him for a while, but her heart sank as she realised he was sat at the Slytherin table. Looking away quickly, she turned to the girl sat beside her and asked who the boy was.

"That's Severus Snape" Veronica Vector replied. "You don't fancy him do you? Isn't he a little greasy?"

"No, of course I don't fancy him!" She answered a little irritably and resumed eating the delicious meal set in front of her. "I just wanted to know who he was!" 

_Severus Snape, she repeated his name in her head. She looked back at him and watched him as he talked to a boy next to him who she knew as Marcus Mulciber, the Slytherin Seeker. Snape wasn't exactly attractive but he did have a certain magnetism. He scared her, but he also intrigued her. She felt an overwhelming urge to talk to him, and, not being one to back down on her stronger urges, she decided that she would when she had the chance._

As she kept her eyes on him, he looked back at her and their eyes met and held for a minute that seemed endless. Breaking eye contact, she quickly looked around the hall to see if anyone had noticed the interaction and her eyes stopped on Sirius who was looking at her with a fierce frown on his face. He ran an agitated hand through his dark hair and she turned away.

"Oh, no..." she mumbled. 

Heather Harris, one of her best friends, sat down at the table and her apology for being late was halted in midstream as she looked at Florence's face.

"What's wrong?" She asked, quietly. Florence only shook her head and, in reply, Heather whispered "We've never kept secrets from each other, Florence, and I can see something's wrong..."

"I'll tell you later, in a more private place!" Florence had noticed that Pamela Percival, Ravenclaw's biggest gossip had taken an interest in their conversation and she wasn't eager for the whole school to know the story.

Once dinner had ended, though, Florence and Heather made a quick dash to the girls' dorm to have a gossip and it was there the whole story spilled out.

"You fancy Severus Snape?! Florence, I knew you had odd taste (you not fancying Sexy Sirius put my mind straight on that score!) but this?" Heather's attraction to Sirius was a little less known than Sirius' fascination with Florence but it was no less immense. She had been chasing him for years and it was a credit to Heather and Florence's friendship that they had never fallen out over him.

"Heather... I just can't explain it... But, I needed to tell someone... I have to speak to him!"

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Heather's pretty face was creased in a frown as she brushed her cropped blonde hair away from her face. Her blue eyes were filled with concern. "After all, he is in Slytherin."

"I know... but what does that matter? It's only a house, Heather..." Heather had started writing on a piece of paper with her ridiculously large, novelty pink quill. "What _are you doing?"_

"I'm gonna owl the men in the white coats...you've gone INSANE!" The last words of her speech were punctuated with a squeal as Florence hit her with a cushion and a pillow fight ensued.  Their earlier concerns forgotten, Florence and Heather fought until they were exhausted and fell asleep.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Heather and Florence were walking to breakfast the next time they saw Severus close up. Unfortunately, Sirius intercepted them as they attempted to dash up to him and talk to him. 

"Hi Florence, how are you today?" Sirius grinned and then noticed Heather as she sighed in admiration. "Oh, hello Heather."

Florence could only watch in misery as Severus walked further and further away. An idea suddenly struck her and she pushed Heather towards Sirius and said "I gotta dash – I forgot something! See you both later" She ran in the direction Severus had just gone, briefly looking back over her shoulder at Heather and Sirius and the sight made her smile. Heather was standing there, her mouth agape at Sirius; a blush was staining her already rosy cheeks. Sirius' expression was no better.

Returning to her mission, she ran up the corridor until she had Snape in her sights. Running until she reached his side, she stopped moving, breathing heavily with the exertion.

He turned to look at her, amusement written in the lines of his face. "Can I help you?" He smiled slightly.

"I... Hi... Uh..." Now she had got him on his own she had no clue on what to say to him. She had forgotten all the little amusing speeches she had prepared and recited in front of the bathroom mirror!

Severus wasn't helping any – his smile was growing gradually into a smirk!  "Is this important? Only I've got a couple of things to do before tomorrow..."

"I... Uh... Wouldyouliketomeetuplaterinthelibrary?" Finally remembering her objective, Florence's speech was blurted out in an almost unintelligible gush.

"Uh..." Severus' smirk was still present in his eyes but a confused expression coloured his face. He scratched his head mockingly. "Can you repeat that?"

Florence blushed but she was determined to get this over and done with. "Would you like to meet up later in the library?" She repeated, a bit more slowly.

Severus' smirk faded a little and she caught a glimpse of pleasure in his eyes. Unfortunately, over her shoulder, he spotted Titus Travers walking towards them "Yes" he promised, in a hushed voice. "I'll see you there after dinner."  Then he was gone.

Florence's heart rose in her chest with joy and she went to find Heather with a huge grin on her face.

"Found what you had forgotten?" Sirius said, sarcastically from behind her. She turned around, still smiling until she saw the expression on his face. It was pure, unadulterated jealousy. "I thought you knew better than to talk to _Slytherins" _

The depth of hatred focused on the last word of his speech shocked Florence into saying: "I thought you were above such prejudice, Sirius" and, seeing James Potter over his shoulder, she waved to the tall skinny boy with the permanently messy hair and glasses. James walked towards them, a happy grin on his face. 

"Hi guys! How are you?" 

Sirius schooled a neutral expression on his face. "We can tell exactly how you are. You just saw Lily Evans, didn't you?" He smiled slightly as James blushed a little.

"I'd better go" Florence interrupted. "Heather'll be wondering where I am". 

"Bye, then" Sirius gave her a piercing look as he and James bode her farewell. Florence, her good mood slightly diminished, went into the Great Hall and sat down at the Ravenclaw table next to Heather. Fortunately, Pamela Percival was no where in sight.

"Where have you been?" Heather hissed. "I've been dying to know how it went!"

A grin split Florence's pretty face and her previously dull green eyes lit up in her face. "He's meeting me in the library later"

Heather let out an excited whoop, which attracted the attention of everyone at the Ravenclaw table. She shifted uncomfortably as everyone stared at her. "What are you looking at?" She countered, rudely.

Quickly finishing their breakfast, the girls left the hall and went to their first lesson wishing the day was already over.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus Snape took time out of his History of Magic lesson to think about Florence. He was sure Professor Binns wouldn't notice – he was too busy waffling on about something or other... nothing of great importance, anyway. 

She was very brave to try and talk to him, despite the disastrous results. He smiled slightly at the memory of her stumbling over her words and blushing red. Well, the results weren't _that disastrous, he thought, as his smile grew wolfish. He was meeting her tonight._

Thinking back to the first time he'd noticed her standing in the hallway, he recalled the memory of her pretty face – her smile welcoming and her eyes glinting with mischief. He still didn't know why he hadn't noticed her before – she was entrancing. Now, he couldn't take his eyes off of her. 

Distracted by his thoughts, he missed the huge paint ball that whizzed past his face and hit the wall next to Professor Binns. The latter didn't notice either; he was too involved in his own lecture. 

The class, full of Slytherins, burst into sniggers and the sharp nudge in his ribs from Travers brought him out of his daydream. 

Snape smirked as he saw the lime green paint from the ball dribble down the wall, his thoughts briefly forgotten as he returned to being a Slytherin.  

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Florence was shaking with nerves by the time dinner came. Heather's soothing words having not performed their objective, the two girls walked slowly towards the Great Hall. Once they had reached their seats, they had calmed down slightly. Florence kept repeating the mantra "It'll be alright" over and over again under her breath to the confusion of Veronica Vector who was sat beside her. 

Heather gave Florence a sharp elbow in her side and hissed to her to make her look up. After giving Heather a "look", she did as she was told and watched as Snape made his way into the hall. His eyes met hers and, as if by ritual, they held for a second. He raised one eyebrow at her as if in acknowledgement of her presence and she gave him a half-smile. He looked past her to the Staff Table and his expression became fixed. Following his gaze, she spotted Professor Dumbledore smiling knowingly at the both of them. Her face flushed red. She glanced at Severus, who was covering his face with his hand, and looked down at her plate. 

After dinner, she walked Heather to the Ravenclaw common room before heading up to the library, Heather's concerned words ringing in her ears: "Are you sure you should be doing this? I don't think it's a good idea. Just stay here with me... Please..." Shaking her head and smiling bravely, Florence had left her. 

She didn't feel so brave now, she thought as she entered the library. Surreptitiously looking around her, she spotted Snape sitting at a table in an enclosed corner, shifting uncomfortably in his seat and leafing through a huge book. After picking up a book of a similar size, she walked over to him and sat opposite. Silently, they leafed through their individual books for a while before she gave in and looked up at him. He was looking at her too and, when she looked a bit closer, she was surprised that he was looking a bit nervous.

"So... how are you?" She almost groaned at the lameness of her opening statement.

The nervous look vanished and he smirked. "Fine. I was more worried about you. You looked as though you were suffering from Crucio, the way you were wriggling in your seat at dinner!"

The ice broken, she stuck her tongue out at him. "Cheeky!" She grinned at him and retorted "You didn't look much better". He mock-scowled at her and snorted, causing her to collapse in fits of laughter, which was quickly muffled when Madam Pince looked over, a fierce look on her face.

With hushed voices, they began to talk – just about general things at first and then about their respective families. Florence, although more comfortable with him now, felt unsure about his reaction if he found out she had Muggle parents (after all, he was a Slytherin!). So, she was hesitant about telling him too much about her home life, but she supplied him with enough information so that he didn't suspect that she was hiding something.

It was about 9.30 when Severus noticed Madam Pince looking pointedly at her watch several times and so he suggested he walk Florence back to the Ravenclaw common room. She agreed, unwilling for the evening to end just yet. Afraid that the caretaker, Mr Pringle, would find them, Severus and Florence tiptoed quickly through the secret passages and Hogwarts corridors. Distracted by their hushed conversation, she forgot about the trick stair that was positioned halfway up a particularly large staircase and she would have fallen if it had not been for him gripping her around her waist. 

Feeling slightly shy, she concentrated on how good it felt to have him holding her with his surprisingly strong arms and stared up into his black eyes.

Severus completely forgot that he was standing in the middle of a tall staircase where anyone could see him and gazed down at the girl in his arms. Fascinated, he watched as her cheeks flushed slightly and he brushed a reddish-brown hair away from her face. He leaned down slightly and brought his head closer and closer to hers.

She waited in anticipation as his face edged closer to hers and sighed silently when their lips touched. He started to kiss her, at first hesitantly, then with more force as he grew more confident. Focusing on the feelings bursting inside of her, Florence did not hear the snipe-ish voice coming from a nearby corridor:

"I know you're around somewhere..."

Severus heard footsteps echoing down the hallway, and reluctantly ended the kiss. He grabbed Florence's hand and dragged her up the staircase just as Mr Pringle rounded the corner.

After running as fast as they could for about 400 yards, Snape pulled Florence into the gap behind a statue as they watched Pringle walk passed, his smell preceding him and hovering for a couple of seconds before following him down the corridor.

"You'd better go..." Florence whispered hurriedly, still out of breath from the run. Severus satisfied himself with one last look at her before he dashed back towards the Slytherin dorms. Florence watched him go before darting round the corner and into her own common room.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Sitting in the stands of the Quidditch stadium, Florence wound her blue Ravenclaw scarf tight around her neck to keep out the winter cold. She lifted her binoculars to her eyes, hoping to get a closer look at the pitch and her team. 

Professor Soarley was refereeing today and muttered some warnings to the Slytherin team before lifting his whistle to his mouth. The piercing sound punctuated the start of the game and Florence felt her chest tighten with excitement as the players swooped around the stadium.

Her eyes fixed briefly on the Ravenclaw Captain and Chaser, Callum Quinlan, as he gained control of the Quaffle. He was a burly boy, in the same year as Florence, with golden hair that shone in the winter sun. 

The chime sounded as the scoreboard changed; Florence cheered with the rest of her house as Ravenclaw scored the first 10 points.  A grin crossed her face as Callum did a loop-the-loop over the pitch and she waved her scarf in the air in appreciation. 

Lifting the binoculars to her eyes again, she searched the Slytherin stands, hoping to catch a glimpse of Severus. Sure enough, her eyes caught on his shiny black hair; his face was twisted into a scowl. She grinned at the furious look he was sending towards the Ravenclaw team and the focused her attention back on the game.

The Slytherin seeker, Marcus Mulciber, had caught sight of the Golden Snitch and was swooping towards it, gaining speed, the Ravenclaw seeker on his tail.

Mulciber caught Edwin Hawley on the side of his face, causing him to spin out of control briefly before he guided his broom back towards the Snitch.

The Ravenclaw stands almost trembled with the loud boos that were radiated at Mulciber and Florence shouted her disapproval with the rest of her house. Just because she fancied a Slytherin doesn't mean she supported their dirty tactics!

Slytherin, in the meantime, had scored another 20 points and so were in the lead. Florence could see the determination in Callum's body language as he avoided the Bludgers and gained control of the Quaffle again. He passed it briefly to another Ravenclaw chaser, Daniel Irving, before scoring another 10 points for Ravenclaw, bringing them level with Slytherin. 

It was all in vain though, as Mulciber once again swooped towards the illusive Snitch before clasping it tightly in his right-hand. The Slytherins cheered in victory as Mulciber held it smugly towards the skies.

Florence let a scowl cloud her usually animated face and she left the stands feeling disheartened. She heard loud footsteps behind her as she walked back towards the castle and, not in the mood to talk to anyone, she ignored them.

"Florence...?" A low, smooth voice made her stop and turn around. Severus was standing behind her, a smirk colouring his features. She could still see the flush of victory in his eyes.

"Can I help you?" Florence asked coldly. She wasn't up to being tormented over her house's loss. Severus grin faded slightly at her question but he didn't give up.

"I was just going to ask you if you enjoyed the game..." Florence glowered at him a little before whipping him lightly with her blue scarf. His smirk back in place, he whipped her back with his green and silver version and she grinned at him.

"Slytherin toadrat!" She threw at him before running off towards Hogwarts before she received a reprimand.

Snape watched her go, her chestnut hair whipping around her head like a halo and her blue Ravenclaw scarf flying out behind her. He wished he could follow her, but he could already see Travers and Mulciber making their way towards him, probably to warn him from talking to her again. He didn't care; he made his way to meet them.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Christmas was near; she could smell it in the air. Florence wrinkled her nose in happiness at the advancing holiday and skipped across the courtyard towards Sirius, James and Remus Lupin who were huddled together. Not noticing her approach, they carried on talking:

"We have to get revenge on him somehow" Sirius' voice was harsh. He ran his hand through his longish sable hair, his face devoid of any trace of his characteristically charming smile. Remus allowed a worried look in his direction before cutting in:

"Are you sure this is necessary, Sirius? We could just..."

"No! We couldn't _just leave it, Remus! He's gone too far this time! Imagine... thinking he could be with Florence when she is so obviously..." A loud 'clearing of the throat' from James made him stop and turn around, just as Florence reached them._

"Hiya! How's it going? You're all looking rather serious... should I leave you alone?" Florence's forehead pleated into a concerned frown.

"No. No. Of course not! We're not discussing anything important." Remus alleviated any fears she might've had with one of his soothing smiles. Relieved, a smile returned to her face and she turned to Sirius.

"How are you, Sirius?" A meagre parody of Sirius' lady-killer smile flashed back onto his face at the question.

"Fine! Just great! Oh..." He looked at his wristwatch worriedly, and clarified his distress. "It's nearly time for our DADA lesson and Professor Ripley doesn't like it when we're late!" Giving the other boys a veiled look, Sirius took off toward his classroom at a run. With a quick good-bye, James and Remus joined him. Florence looked after them, shaking her head in amazement before heading in the direction of the Ravenclaw common room.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus waited outside the Great Hall wanting to get a glimpse of Florence before dinner. Catching sight of her approach, he glanced over at her as she walked down the corridor and watched as she spared him a little concealed smile. He was going to smile back but he spotted Sirius running down the hallway after her. 

Severus watched as Sirius flirted and simpered as he conversed and, as he watched her smile and laugh with him, anger, like bile, rose up inside of him. He recognised it briefly as jealousy but it was too late to stem the flow. He scowled and stalked off, down to the Great Hall.

Florence watched him go, disappointed he hadn't responded to her smile.

"...Florence? Are you listening?" Slightly irritated, Sirius followed her gaze and spotted Snape stalking down the corridor, obviously in a rage. Sirius' face distorted into a rare glower and, as Florence turned back to look at him, she felt her unease grow.

"I'm sorry, Sirius. I'm really not feeling altogether well... I think I'll go to bed a bit early..."

"OK... As long as you're not using that as an excuse to chase after your darling Snapey!" 

Florence swallowed painfully, shocked at the unfairness of the remark but before she could reply he apologised: 

"I'm sorry, Florence. I shouldn't have said that." With that, he turned away and walked down the corridor, his dark head down. She briefly thought about following him and figured that would make it worse than it already was.

Sniffling slightly, she turned and walked the way she had come. She wasn't feeling very hungry after all and she decided it wouldn't hurt her to miss dinner one day. That resolved, she turned and headed to the girls' toilets to cry in private.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Emerging an hour later, Florence, red-eyed and blotchy-faced wandered down the corridor towards the Ravenclaw common room, hoping no one was out of dinner yet. 

Unfortunately, lost in her own thoughts, she bumped straight into a tall figure who was meandering the opposite way.

"Oomph" the tall silhouette groaned. Looking up, Florence recognised Remus' kind face. "Florence? Why aren't you at dinner?"

"I wasn't feeling very hungry... wait a minute! Why aren't _you having dinner?" _

Remus grinned a trifle sheepishly, his gentle brown eyes twinkling with mischief. "I guess I wasn't hungry either..." He prevaricated. He looked down at her face, still smeared with tears. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah... I'm fine." She sniffed and sobbed slightly; then finally burst into another flood of tears.

Hugging her to him, Remus murmured soothing phrases like "Its gonna be alright" and "Are you sure you don't want to tell me what's wrong?"

Comforted slightly in his arms, she buried her head in his robes. In truth, she was feeling more than a little embarrassed.  She heard footsteps echoing down the hallway, so she hid her face even more to hide her tears from the rest of the world.

From her sheltered position, all she heard was a muttered expletive and growl that came from somewhere nearby. She felt Remus stiffen slightly and let her go, so she looked up from his robes and froze. Severus was staring at the both of them, his face like thunder.

"Severus..." She whispered.

"I wondered where you were at dinner" He snarled "but it appears I didn't need to. You were obviously _well looked after" He took an aggressive step forward and Remus, making a gurgling sound in his throat behind her, reminded her that they weren't alone._

"It's alright, Remus. _I'll be alright" She pushed him away slightly and, with one last concerned look at the both of them, Remus hurried down the corridor not looking back. She had a horrible feeling he went to find Sirius. "Severus..." She turned back to face him, but he was obviously in no mood to stand and talk._

"No, Florence. There's no need to explain – I think I know the story..." He was frowning fiercely but Florence could have sworn she saw real hurt in his eyes. She took a step towards him but he 

"I don't think you do, so listen!" Her rare temper was beginning to surface. "I'd just been crying about you and Remus found me and gave me a hug. Is that OK with you? Do I have to ask you every time I want a hug from a friend?"

"A likely story..." Snape said, sarcastically, but he looked a little less sure of himself. "Florence..." He took a step towards her but she'd had enough. She ran from him and into the Ravenclaw common room where she knew he couldn't follow.

Severus stood and looked, astonished, at her fast disappearing back. The anger that was once so strong had evaporated and he was left feeling only remorse. _What had he done? He cursed himself for his stupidity and his quick-temper and was still muttering expletives when Sirius rounded the corner at a run._

"What have you done with her? You call yourself a man!" Sirius shouted at him.

"What right do you have to care?" With another, more suitable target to base his anger on, Snape felt his temper rise. 

"What do you mean?! I'm Florence's... friend!" Sirius paused deliberately, causing Snape's hackles to rise. 

"Oh, really?" Snape yelled and swung for him. Not expecting physical contact, Sirius was hit hard on the side of his face and went flying towards the wall. 

"You... you... bastard!" Sirius paid off Snape's punch with one of his own that stung Severus' nose. With that, they both went for each other and in no time, they were rolling around the floor, brawling like a couple of master wrestlers looking for trouble. 

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Florence had obviously come out of the common room to see what the commotion was. Stood slightly behind her was Heather, a shocked expression on her face. Both boys stopped fighting and looked up in terror at her face. 

"Florence, I..." Sirius started talking only to be silenced by the look on her face. 

"Florence..." Severus tried but he was also scowled at. All four students suddenly heard footsteps coming along the corridor and the smell of Pringle drew near.

"Run" Florence just had time to gasp before he turned the corner. The students made a quick dash down the corridor before he found them. Pausing at a fork in the corridor, they hesitated briefly before splitting up in twos and carrying on - Florence found herself, once again, alone with Snape.

Florence stopped, gasping, her lungs aching with trying to keep up with her painful breathing. Snape ran a couple of steps before noticing that she was not running anymore. He turned back to her.

"Come on, Florence!" He hissed.

"I can't... run... anymore..." She gasped, and he ran back to her. "Maybe he's gone..." she pleaded, just as she heard Pringle's voice:

"I know you're here... I'll find you eventually – there's no point in hiding!"

Wasting no time, Snape swept her off of her feet and ran down the hallway, showing an amazing amount of strength and agility. Revelling in the feeling, Florence almost smiled, despite the danger they were in.  Severus slid her gently to the floor next to a column and they hid behind it, but were sure that Pringle had taken another route. 

"Florence..." Snape whispered.

"I know... I'm sorry, too" She suddenly noticed there was blood running down his face from a bruise at his temple. "Severus, you're bleeding!" She touched her hand to the side of his face and he winced in pain. She took her handkerchief from a pocket of her robes and dabbed the blood gingerly with it.  He smiled at her, one of his real, genuine smiles and she felt her heart soar. 

"I really do like you, Severus" She murmured and his eyes widened with astonishment at her soft-spoken words.

"You do?" He muttered in surprise and, when she nodded, his eyes glowed with pleasure. It was all the confirmation she needed and she stood on tiptoes for a kiss.

Without the need for invitation, Severus' lips sought hers; his hands moulded her body to his. Florence wound her arms around his neck and pulled him to her while she explored his mouth as eagerly as he was exploring hers. She felt totally pliable in his arms and malleable to his will, but she didn't care. This was where she wanted to be, forever.

Hearing Pringle's footsteps getting nearer, this time Florence pulled away and she and Severus dashed back to their prospective dorms, but not without another quick bout of kissing.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Where have you been?" Heather hissed as Florence crept back into the girl's dorm. 

"We ran from Pringle... had to go in a different direction from you..." 

Heather's face frowned worriedly and her baby-blue eyes darkened a little. "We? Maybe Sirius is right." 

"Sirius... What has Sirius said? Tell me, Heather." Florence pleaded, a little irritated that Sirius could come to a bad conclusion about her and Severus.

"He said... He said that Severus was bad for you and he'd only end up hurting you." Heather caught sight of the scowl that clouded Florence's face and carried on hurriedly. "He's only trying to look out for you. WE are only trying to look out for you! Honestly Florence, do you really think Snape is all that wonderful? Wouldn't you be better with someone like... Sirius? Someone who isn't a Slytherin?"

Florence's eyes filled with tears and she felt like Heather had betrayed her. Turning away, she slowly began to get undressed, unwanted tears spilling down her cheeks. Heather touched her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Florence. If he really means all that much to you, then I'll stand by you through the ups and the downs. But if he hurts you..." Heather hugged her tightly and Florence buried her face into her friend's shoulder.

"I know" She whispered. "But I know that Severus would never hurt me intentionally."

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Snape watched in disdain at the assembly who were making their way towards him.

James, Sirius and Remus were striding down the corridor and, not far behind, Peter Pettigrew was waddling along, trying to keep up.

Snape gave them all a menacing snarl but saved the worst of it for Sirius. How dare he insinuate that there was anything between Florence and himself? 

Remus gave Severus a worried glance but Sirius just glared straight back, almost as if he was willing him to start another fight. Severus had taken an aggressive step forward before he remembered Florence's words: "Promise me, Severus... promise me you won't fight with Sirius again. I don't want either of you to get hurt, especially not for me." Snape turned away, cursing himself and her for making him promise. It made him look weak when he stepped down from a fight and... 

A new thought struck him: he didn't _have to get even with them using violence! There were other means available. A malicious smile twisted his face as he plotted his revenge..._

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus stood on the platform at Hogwarts station and waved half-heartedly at the departing train. Florence waved from one of the back carriages and blew him a kiss before sitting down, out of sight. 

Although he enjoyed holidays, Christmas was his least favourite because he had to share it with his sister. Every year, she met him at Hogwarts station and they took a port key back to their home in Lincolnshire, together. 

Thankfully, in a couple of months, he would be taking his Apparating license and he wouldn't have to be picked up from school like a child anymore.

He wished that he was back at Hogwarts with Florence and that they didn't have to go anywhere but, unfortunately, she had already started the journey home to her loving family – something he didn't have.

Pushing the dark greasy hair that covered his face back with one hand, he caught sight of a familiar figure heading his way. 

Dressed in her habitual black that made her look much older than her 29 years, Alexandra strode determinedly towards her little brother. Her long black hair was twisted severely into a tight topknot, and her darker-than-black eyes were fierce and unyielding. Nether-the-less, she swept her sibling into her arms and gave him a powerful hug that nearly winded him.

"Severus... there you are! I've been looking for you everywhere." She boomed in her strong voice. "Are you ready? Is that your luggage?" Without waiting for a reply, she muttered a few words and the baggage levitated. She gestured broadly for him to accompany her along the platform, the luggage following, towards a tall, skinny man who Severus recognised as his brother-in-law, Lycidas. With a quick greeting and a worried look at his wife, Lycidas took control of the luggage. 

"We'd better be going. We're going to be late" He murmured, timidly, before Alexandra grasped his arm and pulled him along beside her. Severus walked behind.

While he crossed the platform, he allowed himself to think about his parents. He hadn't really known them – they had always been off on holiday or going out with friends, leaving him in the care of a reluctant sister, who was 12 years older and didn't want him hanging around.

His father had died, not soon after his mother, when he was eight. Both had grown old and weary of their extravagant pursuits but had no energy to care for their children. Severus had been put into the care of his sister and her new husband, Lycidas Lackadaisical.

Although he loved his sister, in the way all siblings love each other, the age gap between them was too wide to ever bridge. And the resentment she had felt as a teenager towards him could never fade.

"Pick up your feet, Severus! We have a long way to travel today..."

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Florence looked overhead as the owls came in with the mail. It was Valentine's day; everyone was eager to see if they had got anything and, although Florence didn't think Severus was the type to give cards, she hoped he'd make an exception for her.

Sure enough, she spotted her owl heading towards her with... TWO cards clutched tightly in its claws. Tizane, her owl, dropped them in front of her on the table: a white card with a silver heart in the corner and a blue card with hearts adorning the top edge. Both cards had "To Florence" written on in script. 

Guessing that one of the cards was from Severus, she opened up the one with familiar writing: the white one. She eased out the card. The words "From Your Secret Valentine" were looped across the top and a giant red heart was decorating the rest of the card. Peering inside, she caught sight of initials printed at the bottom: "SB" SB? Did she know anyone with those initials? A thought dawned on her: Sirius! 

Glad the curiosity was over, she looked at the other card, convinced Severus must have sent it. After all, who else would send her a Valentine? But she didn't recognise the handwriting on the envelope. She assured herself that it was probably disguised. 

Peeling open the flap of the blue envelope, she opened the card's cover and... nothing! It wasn't signed; not even initials! Even so, she was sure Severus wouldn't have written his name. 

Sighing with disappointment that the excitement was over, she put the card down and looked around her at the other students. 

Her eyes fixed on Severus as he tucked the card she had given him inside his robes so that no one saw. She grinned a little: she didn't expect him to open it up in front of everyone. In fact, she preferred it this way.

Turning to her right, she watched as Heather blushed and ripped open her Valentine's day card:

"To Heather, my own secret valentine, With love, RL"

Heather's colour rose even more as she caught Florence looking at her.

"Ummm…aaaah…" She flushed with embarrassment and Florence's smile grew.

"I didn't know you and Remus…" Florence stopped teasing as she saw her friend was getting really flustered.

"Nor did I… until this morning!" Florence turned around towards the Gryffindor table and caught sight of Remus with an identical expression on his face but his was tinged with mortification.  Florence, taking one last chance to tease, waved at him and smiled, ignoring his discomfort.

Turning towards the staff table, she spotted Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, unwrapping a small heart shaped box of Valentine socks while laughing with Professor Ripley. 

Smiling to herself, she tucked Severus' card into her robes, next to her heart.  She deposited the other Valentine's card in her robe pocket and patted it absentmindedly, wondering if Sirius would ever give up. Florence carried on eating her breakfast, feeling slightly disappointed that all the excitement was over so quickly.

Severus, looking over at the Ravenclaw table, saw that Florence had had two cards. Guilt rose briefly in his gut as he saw the disappointment on her face. He really should have made the effort to get her a card, at least. After all, she had got him one.

Fingering the Valentine in his robe pocket, he felt a smirk grow on his face. It was not his first Valentine's card. He had received many in previous years from younger Slytherin girls who thought they'd had a chance with him but he'd set them straight! This card meant a whole lot more than the rest put together and that's what worried him. 

Looking back at Florence, he saw her put a card next to her heart and his temper rose. Was she seeing someone else? No one made a fool out of Severus Snape! A scowl settled across his features, replacing the short-lived smirk. 

Looking around the hall at anything but Florence lovingly handling the card, Severus noticed Sirius Black staring fixedly at Florence and his scowl worsened considerably. If Florence was seeing Sirius he'd... He didn't know what he'd do, but it wouldn't be pleasant!

He caught Sirius' eye and gave him a glare that could freeze dragons' breath. Sirius retorted with a similar look before pointedly returning his gaze to his obsession.

Severus seethed with anger, his ears almost emitting steam. He spotted Florence looking at him with concern and his temper grew. He didn't need her concern... 

Sirius focused his eyes back on Florence after returning Snape's glare. Who did he think he was? Her keeper? They weren't even going out!  Thinking briefly about this, he was sure that Florence wouldn't make that greasy bastard her boyfriend. She knew better than that, surely! 

But, looking at the expression on Florence's face as she gazed over at the Slytherin table, he wasn't so sure. He felt his heart sink as he saw her push his card aside in favour of another and felt his anger rise. How could she pick that nasty piece of work over him?

Sirius pushed his breakfast plate aside and tightened his hands into fists under the table  

_I don't give up that easily, he told himself and repeated the words to Snape in a cold stare.  _

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus stalked along the corridor to his potions lesson. It was one of the only lessons he liked but today he was in no mood for it. He loitered in the corridor briefly, taking stock of the events that had gone by since the beginning of the year.

He had met Florence; he wasn't sure if it was good or bad because she brought out a weakness in him that he couldn't control. His mind's eye conjured up an image of her and, although she wasn't beautiful like Pandora Devine, one of his fellow students in Slytherin, he felt drawn to her in a way he couldn't explain. It was similar to the tug he had felt when he saw his first Veela but there was a difference: putting your fingers in your ears and humming loudly would not stop him being attracted to Florence. 

Smiling slightly at the image, he looked out of the window towards the Quidditch Stadium. He could see the Ravenclaw team practising for their next match, against Gryffindor and he hoped, for once, that Ravenclaw would win. He couldn't stand Gryffindors!

Thinking about the odiousness of that house, he deliberated over his three worst enemies:

James Potter had always been clever. Clever, bold and... without common sense! He could do amazing things without trying and that annoyed Snape. Severus had had to work for his goals and _still had been constantly criticised by his family. Sometimes he thought they were more ambitious then he was!_

Sirius Black was too arrogant for his own good. Severus clenched his fist subconsciously as he thought about wiping that smug smile off of his face. He needed to be put in his place and Snape knew that he was the one to do it.

And to make it a complete trio, Remus Lupin had joined the gang. He snarled as he caught sight of Lupin through the window but was surprised when he saw Madam Pomfrey lead him towards the Whomping Willow. Curious as to what they were doing there, Severus moved closer to the glass but lost sight of them.

Maybe this was the chance he was waiting for! His face tightened in concentration as he started to plan, not seeing the silhouette that crept away, through the shadows. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Enchanting music filled the air and Florence felt herself drawn to the hypnotising sound. She moved her seat closer to the desk as if to absorb as much sound as possible. The melody ceased as quickly as it had started and she began to feel irritation line her stomach. 

"You should never listen to a Siren's song alone or for a very long time as it could lead you to disaster. Many people in history have succumbed to the melodies they have emitted and have been killed. Sirens particularly favour sailors as you can see if you turn to your textbook, page 235."

Florence listened carefully to Professor Ripley's lecture and quickly turned the page when prompted. In truth, she was a little annoyed with herself for yielding to the music that way. Looking up at her favourite Professor, she saw Ripley look at her in sympathy, as if she knew what she was thinking. Florence smiled a little at her teacher before reverting back to the textbook.

"You can deal with a siren in very much the same way as a Veela – cover your ears! If you look at the third paragraph, you can see that Orpheus succeeded against them by doing that very thing!" 

Florence skimmed her eyes down the page, pausing briefly at a very graphic picture of the creatures luring some poor unsuspecting sailors to their deaths. Feeling a little sickened by the sight of the half-women-half-bird shaped monsters, Florence set her thoughts on something a little more attractive: Severus!

She was a little worried about him – he'd been very distant the last time she'd seen him and he hadn't even made an effort to stop and say hello. There was something wrong but she couldn't put her finger on it. That bothered Florence because she'd always been very good at problem solving, but he seemed to be the only problem she couldn't crack. Sighing a little, Florence turned her attention back to the lesson.

"Right. We're going to be moving on next lesson to do some work on the Bunyip, so I'd like you all to write an 1000 word essay on Sirens, just so I can make sure you've been paying attention!" 

There was a chorus of groans from the everyone in the class but Florence who looked forward to assignments for Defence Against the Dark Arts. The bell rang, causing all the pupils to start hurriedly packing away their things. "Don't forget! I want it in on Monday!"

"Florence?" A male voice held her back. She turned to face Callum Quinlan. "I don't suppose you'd help me with the essay? We've got another Quidditch practice coming up and Professor Soarley has told me I can't play unless I receive a good grade..."

Interrupting his very attractive Irish lilt, Florence smiled, "Of course! How about tonight? In the Ravenclaw Common Room after dinner?" 

Callum nodded and grinned in reply before catching up with the short figure of Edwin Hawley, the Ravenclaw seeker.

"Florence? Hi!" James Potter ran up to her. He looked a little flustered.

"Hi James! How are you?" Florence smiled in welcome, while she swept her long chestnut hair into a ponytail. 

"I'm in a little bit of a mess actually..."

Florence's face took on a concerned air. "What's wrong? Anything I can do?"

"I was hoping you'd say that! It's Lily..." The Gryffindor Seeker's face took on a more rosy hue when he mentioned the attractive redhead. "It's her birthday coming up and I don't have a clue what to buy her! I was wondering whether you could..."

"Help? Yes, of course! We could pop down to Hogsmeade this weekend – I'm sure we could find something without her noticing."

James' face lost it's worried expression and he smiled in relief. "Thanks Florence. It was just that... you were the only one I could ask. I'm sure Sirius wouldn't have a clue, and Remus..." He shrugged and Florence grinned at the thought of Sirius shopping for a girl! "How are things going with you at the moment?"

Florence paused, not wanting to mention Severus. She knew there was a fierce rivalry between them, mainly on Severus' side. He was extremely jealous of James, which saddened her. After all, James was a human being too! "Fine, just fine! How's Lily?" 

Florence cunningly changed the subject to the girl James obviously adored. It was a plan that could not fail. Laughing at the blush that stained his face as he talked of Lily, Florence gave him a quick hug. He was so sweet! 

James gave her a quick squeeze before letting her go. He ran a careless hand through his already mussed-up hair and grinned. "I'd better go. Got potions next." He made a funny face that made her laugh before dashing off down the corridor towards the dungeons. 

Florence watched him go and pondered how anyone could hate the sweet-natured gangly boy. He was one of the nicest people she had ever met.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus added some mandrake root to the bubbling mixture and stirred it in. Looking at the curiously blue potion, he felt someone watching over his shoulder.

"Very good, Severus, as always." Professor Amalgamy peered through her half-moon spectacles down at the solution before moving to the next cauldron. Severus felt a stirring of pride and allowed a smirk to drift onto his face. He added a little more Fwooper spittle. 

 "Well done James! You seem to have anticipated my next move again. Exceptional work!" His satisfaction short-lived, Severus felt his fists tighten as he recognised that, once again, James Potter had beaten him, and at his favourite subject! He'd gone a step too far this time.

Someone passed him a note:

If you want to see where Remus is going, follow him and prod the large knot on the Whomping Willow

It wasn't signed. Severus looked around him. Who could have sent the note? He spotted only one person looking at him: Circe Icelus, but she had been stalking him for years! She couldn't have sent the note – she was too stupid to know what he was really after. Giving the Slytherin girl a scowl, he turned back to his cauldron. 

The mixture was now a bright green, signifying its readiness. He called to the professor and, as she praised him for having his potion ready first, smirked nastily at Potter, not noticing the look of pure hatred Sirius was sending his way.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Sirens generally picked on sailors, didn't they?" Callum's handsome face was filled with confusion. Defence Against the Dark Arts was his worst subject so he was very grateful for any help that he was given. Especially when it came in the package that was Florence Findal. He looked at her as she explained about the sirens and watched as her face became more and more animated. He could tell that she loved the subject as much as he loved Quidditch and so was very glad to have her input. He watched as she ran her fingers through her chestnut hair and her green eyes danced with excitement.

"Callum? Are you listening?" She touched her hand to his shoulder and felt him jump. He looked at her guiltily.

"Sorry! Can you repeat that?" Florence sighed with exasperation before returning to her topic. Callum made a bit more of an effort to concentrate this time but failed miserably. He wondered what she would do if he asked her...

"Florence? Will you go out with me?" Callum interrupted her graphic description of how Sirens kill and stared at him in confusion.

"What?!"

"Will you go...? Oh, never mind!"

"Uhh... sorry Callum but... I already have a boyfriend." Florence gazed across at the burly boy in sympathy. "I'm really sorry!"

Callum looked a bit sad. "It's OK, Florence. It's just, after I sent you that Valentine's card, I thought..."

"Hold it! You sent me a Valentine's card?" Her face contorted with shock.

"Yeah... a little blue one with silver... Wait a minute! You didn't know it was from me?"

"No. You didn't sign it, you ninny! How was I supposed to know?"

"Well, you sort of held it to your chest and looked over at me. I just..."

"Oh no!" Florence groaned, slapped her hand to her forehead and ran from the room, leaving Callum gazing after her in amazement.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus paced up and down the corridor. He was too wired to sleep and he wanted to escape the rowdiness of the Slytherin common room. 

He was still unsure about who had sent him that note but knew that he was going to act upon it, no matter who had. It was the only way he could find a weakness in Remus and, therefore, the whole lot of them.

His mouth tightened, as he thought of James, all smug and happy with his brains and his friends and his girlfriend who obviously adored him, but he grinned a little at the thought of taking all that away from him. 

"Oooph!" He heard a cry as a small figure bumped into him. 

"What do you think you're doing?! Watch where you're... Florence?"

"Severus? Wow! That was good timing!" She grinned up at him, her green eyes sparkling. They faded slightly as she saw the look on his face. 

"What do you want?" He asked, coldly. He leaned forward and his dark hair covered his face, hiding his scornful expression,

"Severus? The Valentine's card... you didn't send it."

"Clearly!" 

"I thought you did. I thought..."

"You what? And why would I do a thing like that? Me, sending Valentine's cards to Ravenclaws!" He snorted and Florence's face fell. 

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Severus." She turned and walked the way she came. Severus stood and watched her go, before pushing greasy strands of hair away from his face and walking back into the common room, slamming the door behind him.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus crept out towards the Whomping Willow, carefully watching out in case Pringle saw him. The moonlight glinted off the shiny blackness of his hair as he strode quickly towards the violent tree. He could see the knot on the trunk but it was far out of reach. 

Searching around on the ground, Snape found a longish stick and hoped it would work. He leaned as close to the tree as he dared and gave the knot a good prod. 

The tree stood still and not a single branch moved. Staring in surprise, Severus noticed that a small gap had opened near the roots of the tree.

He crawled down into the hole and stopped. A long tunnel was in front of him. Snape wrinkled his nose slightly at the dank smell that filled the air. It was worse than the dungeons at the Snape Estate! The walls and ceilings were dripping with ground water and Severus slowly avoided the moisture as he started down the tunnel.

He hadn't gone very far before a low growl penetrated the silence and the hairs rose on the back of his neck. Peering into the darkness, he spotted a shape... a large shape looming at the end of the tunnel. Severus was frozen to the spot in fear, unable to escape. His eyes were fixed to the terrifying sight. 

"Come on!" Snape felt a tug on his robes but he couldn't move. "What are you waiting for?!" He felt another tug on his robes, this time sharper and he turned slightly. The animal sensing his movements began to make its way down the tunnel at great speed and Severus was only just safe as the unknown boy dragged him out of the hole.

They staggered back with the momentum and watched the hole close to the great fury of the animal inside. 

"Snape? Can you hear me? Are you alright?" Severus fixed his ink-black eyes on the figure in front of him. The person who had saved his life. It was James Potter. 

Brushing off the grass that covered him in an effort to disguise his fear and anger, Snape stood up and stared at Potter in fury.

"I suppose you thought that was funny did you? You and Black and Lupin! You thought you'd lead me into a trap – maybe to die! – and then you'd save my life so I'd _owe you something" Snape was shaking with anger and James took a step back, adjusting his glasses on his nose._

"It was nothing like that, Snape. Sirius just thought..."

Snape had heard enough. He brushed past James, almost pushing him over in the process, and marched back to Hogwarts in a rage. 

"Snape...!" Severus just ignored the anxious calls James was shouting after him. He went back into the fortress and marched straight up to Dumbledore's office.

"Professor Dumbledore!" Snape burst into his office after knocking shortly to announce his presence. He wasn't sure Dumbledore would still be there but he was hoping so.

Professor Dumbledore was sat at his desk, his phoenix, Fawkes, was sat quietly in his lap. He looked up with surprise and took in the bleeding wound that was existed on Snape's head. 

"Severus? What happened?" Dumbledore's face was stern; his eyes had stopped twinkling. 

"Potter... Black... Lupin... Whomping Willow... Werewolf!" Snape let all his feelings out in a big unintelligible rush, too annoyed to even think of calming down.

"Sit down, Severus!" Dumbledore had seen through the mumble and knew exactly what had happened. "What exactly did you see? Did you see Remus Lupin in his changed form?"

Snape sat down in the high-backed chair that stood opposite Dumbledore's desk. "Yes" he muttered. "Bu only a glimpse before Potter dragged me out"

"You must not tell anyone what you have seen." 

Snape looked up in surprise. "Sir?"

"Listen to me. You must not tell anyone." Severus' face twisted into a scowl but Dumbledore kept his bright blue eyes on him in a determined stare. "Severus? Do you swear you will not tell a soul?"

"Yes, sir" Snape muttered. He should have known Dumbledore knew. After all, James Potter and his _friends were practically his favourites!_

"Now, go see Madame Pomfrey so she can take care of that cut on your head-"

Dumbledore's speech was cut off as James came into the room. 

"Sorry, sir, but..."

"It's all sorted, James. Go back to your dormitory." James nodded with relief and left the room. 

"Off you go, Severus" Dumbledore ordered with a steely look in his eyes. "And I must remind you that, were it not for Mr Potter, you would not be standing here now."

Snape scowled. As if he'd forget! He left the office and headed towards the medical wing. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

A/N: Wow! This is our longest chapter ever!

Considering that we made this for reference for our other story: Wrongs Darker Than Death Or Night (like we have any other stories at the moment!) it might not be that good! But we still appreciate reviews and such like – it makes us feel better! 


	2. The Middle

The Middle:

Disclaimer: We do not own any characters that were in the book, but we do own Heather!

We **have **pinched a scene out of book four but we promise to give it back!!! Its not ours we just wanted to use it to make our story better!!!

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Why didn't you change? You could have been killed, James, and for that loser? You must be out of your mind!" Sirius looked visibly shaken at the thought of his friend injured, or worse. He waved the Marauder's Map in gesticulation.

"Don't be dense, Sirius! What if he'd found out that we were animagus? Illegal animagus at that! Do you think he would have just ignored it?" James blue eyes pierced Sirius' darker ones at the question.

"Of course not! It's just... you could have died!"

"Yes. And it would have been all your fault! It was your idea to lead him into the trap. What were you thinking?" James' whole body was tense with anger at Sirius' stupidity.

Sirius straightened his robes and ran a hand through his dark over-long hair. "It seemed a good idea at the time – I just wanted to scare him!"

"You did that alright! He went and saw Dumbledore."

Sirius paled. "Oh, no! What happened?"

"Dumbledore swore him to secrecy..." Sirius brightened at James' words. "But you must promise not to try anything like this again. Not only are you endangering Snape's life, but you're endangering mine and causing Remus great pain." James adjusted his glasses on his nose; he was deadly serious. Sirius just nodded in agreement before following his friend down the corridor.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Severus? Are you alright?" Florence walked up to him with a concerned look on her face. Severus ignored her and moved past, down the corridor towards Titus Travers.

"You shouldn't have bothered." She muttered under her breath. Turning around, she came across Sirius and James, both wearing identically worried expressions. "Hi, guys!" James smiled at her a little, but Sirius just looked at her. "What's wrong?" She searched both of their faces for clues. James spoke up:

"Sirius lead Snape into Remus' hideout last night, when he was in his changed form" 

"Changed form?" Florence looked at them, her brow wrinkled in confusion. James and Sirius looked at each other before finally agreeing on something.

"Remus is a werewolf." James confided quietly. Florence gasped and her face visibly whitened. 

"James dragged him out just in time." Sirius interrupted, his face unchanged.

"He could have been killed and it would be all our fault" At James' words, Florence looked as if she was going to faint. James put a steadying hand on her shoulder.

"Why?" She whispered "Why would you..." Looking at Sirius' face, she found the answer: because of her. Tears filled her eyes and she dashed down the corridor towards the Ravenclaw common room and to safety.

"Florence!" Sirius called after her, causing many heads to turn, but James just laid a hand on his shoulder and led him away. 

Snape watched the by-play and smirked slightly to himself. _Well, at least I got a little revenge on Black. It looks like Florence won't be speaking to him for a while._

With that, Severus moved off, Travers and Mulciber following close behind.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Florence sat on her bed in the girls' dorm, her arms wrapped around her legs for comfort. She rocked back and forth.

"What if Severus had been killed? What would I have done then?" She whispered to herself. "It's all my fault that this had all started in the first place. Maybe everything would be fine if I didn't exist..." Tears ran down Florence's face as she continued to rock her body to-and-fro.

Standing up abruptly, she moved over to the mirror that stood on one side of the room and looked at her reflection. A weeping girl stared miserably back and clutched her arms around her waist protectively. Florence sunk to the floor, her legs just giving up and she curled into a ball and wept. 

"Florence? Oh! Florence!" Heather entered the room and ran over to the trembling figure that lay on the floor.

"Go away. Just go away, Heather! I want to be alone."

"But, Flor-"

"GO AWAY!" Heather backed away from the figure and out of the room. Leaving the common room at a run, she cornered Severus as he was on his way to his next class.

"You! What have you done, you louse?!"

"Excuse me?" Severus turned around, the stirrings of anger in his eyes. "What do _you_ want?"

Heather looked up at him from her diminutive 5'2" and stared him down. "What have you done to Florence, you miserable bastard!" Snape's eyes narrowed at the insult as he gripped Heather's shoulders between his strong hands. She felt momentarily scared before she regained her strength. "What's happened to her?" Severus' eyes bored fiercely into Heather's and she glared back.

"As if you didn't know!" She shrugged off his hands and marched away. 

Severus strode hurriedly towards the Ravenclaw common room. Waiting outside until a Ravenclaw came along, he stopped a first year and threatened to do nasty deeds to them unless he let him in. Petrified by the anger that was present on Snape's face, the small boy did his bidding. 

Snape barged into the common room and started to stride across the room towards the girls' dorms. He was stopped by Callum Quinlan. 

"What are you doing in here, Slytherin scum?" He snarled. Snape just pushed him aside and marched up the stairs. Quinlan followed closely on his heels.

Severus let himself into Florence's room and stood in the doorway, watching as she wept in her curled-up position on the floor. He heard a sound behind him and, with fast reflexes, struck Quinlan on his face, knocking him backwards and slammed the door, locking it behind him.

"How did someone so stupid like him get into Ravenclaw?" He mused.

Florence, hearing the racket, looked up from her position and saw Snape standing in front of her. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. "This is a girls' dormitory, Severus! This is a RAVENCLAW girls' dormitory! How did you get in here?!"

Severus allowed a smirk to flit across his face before he perched on a stool next to her. "Never you mind!"

Florence wiped her face with her handkerchief and looked at him. "Well, if you made all that effort to get in here, you must have something important to say." 

"You heard about last night?"

"From James and Sirius, yes."

"And, you're crying?"

"Clearly!" Florence took a leaf out of Severus' book and answered him sarcastically. Severus grinned slightly before his face grew serious.

"I'm sorry." He muttered, almost under his breath.

"What?"

"I'm sorry." He said, slightly louder and more clearly and a smile warmed Florence's face. 

"For what?"

"You know" Florence reached out for him and he pulled her into his arms. Sitting her on his lap, he wiped away the tears that still stained her face. 

"You could have been killed!" The tears began to flow again.

"But I wasn't"

"Yeah, but you could have been!" Florence rested her head against his shoulder, sniffling into his robes.

"But I wasn't" 

Florence sighed. "Was Professor Dumbledore mad?"

"Sort of"

"You don't have to leave do you?!"

"No" Severus leaned forward and hugged her more tightly in his arms. "Ssshhh..." He whispered, just wanting to hold her in silence. He felt enormous relief that they were together again. _What had he been thinking? There was no way that she would be seeing another man!_

Hugging her to him one more time, he whispered in her ear: "I should get out of here. I'll be in trouble."

"Oh gosh, yes! Go!" Florence shuffled off of his lap and fell onto the floor. "Ouch!" 

Severus, with one last look at her, dashed out of the room. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Professor Dumbledore's face grew serious. "I would like to introduce you to Mr Pringle's replacements…"

Florence sighed. _Anyone would be better than Pringle!_ She thought but her heart sank as her eyes took in the repulsive couple that stood at the back of the Great Hall.

"…Mr Filch and Mrs Norris."

Mr Filch was a tallish scrawny man, who's sickeningly greasy hair hung just below his shoulders. He had one bony hand around the waist of a similarly thin woman, whom she supposed to be Mrs Norris. 

Florence, horrified by their scraggy appearance, turned to Heather, whose expression was similarly aghast. _Two people – two horrible people – to replace one?_

It was going to be even harder for her to see Severus now...

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Thursday was Herbology day so Severus waited outside the greenhouses for Florence's lesson to finish. In all honesty, he couldn't have waited one more minute to talk to her. When he saw her, though, talking left his mind and he ended up kissing her breathless.

Although happy to see him, Florence was only too aware of all the pupils milling about and urged him to go before anyone saw them... but it was too late.

A startled cry came from behind them and they both turned round, terror written on both of their faces. Bertha Jorkins was standing opposite, mouth agape and before they could do anything, she had run away, probably to tell someone.

Snape turned back to Florence, annoyance and fear written in the lines of his face. "I'm going to go after her..." 

"Severus... what are you gonna do?" She said, hesitantly. "Are you gonna do something... nasty?"

"Hardly!" He smirked at her a little and then he was gone, his cloak billowing behind him as he strode after Bertha.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

'He put a hex on me, Professor Dumbledore, and I was only teasing him, sir, I only said I'd seen him kissing Florence behind the greenhouses last Thursday...'

'But why, Bertha,' said Dumbledore sadly, 'why did you have to follow him in the first place?'

"I didn't follow him, sir! I was on my way to Herbology when I saw..." Bertha stopped and looked over at Snape who was glaring at her. Not wanting to be hexed again, she fell silent. 

Dumbledore turned to Snape. "Why did you hex her, Severus? I thought I'd told you all not to use magic out of the classrooms" Dumbledore looked enquiringly at Snape, who just stood and stared at his feet, not speaking.

"Well... Severus, I'm afraid I'm going to have to let your Head of House decided your fate..."

Severus looked up at this and alarm streaked across his face. Professor Fiendus, Head of Slytherin house was well known for being over-strict but that was a severe understatement. Snape slowly turned to look at the face of the House Head and was disturbed to see a sadistic smile colouring his face. 

In fact, because of the 'Sewn-up Mouth Hex' incident, Severus was put in night-time detention for a fortnight, which meant he didn't see much of Florence at all, except from afar.

Every time he saw her, though, the feeling in the pit of his stomach got stronger and he knew it wasn't just sex – he'd had _that_ feeling before many times and had satisfied it! But this was different... _This_ was new.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Sirius leaned one hand against the wall above her head. His slow lady-killer smile curved his mouth and he had a wicked gleam in his blue eyes. He leaned forward and the girl who was caught in his stare blushed and wriggled a little at the unaccustomed flirtation. 

"We'll see if I can make that a little better for you, then..." He purred in a husky voice before moving away and stalking down the corridor. The fifth year Hufflepuff, Aurora Pearce, gazed after him in pure adoration. 

"Sirius, do you ever stop?" Florence giggled a little at his obvious foreplay. 

"Why? Do you want a turn?"

"If you do, you'd better take a ticket and join the end of the line!" A familiar smooth female voice approached their ears from behind, and, turning around, they saw Lily Evans coming towards them. She was smiling happily and holding hands with her fellow Head-Pupil, James Potter. James was trying hard not to let a smug grin colour his face. After all, he was going out with the prettiest girl in school. 

"Lily! Hey!" Sirius moved a little closer to her and kissed her hand in a typically flirtatious gesture. James' feathers ruffled a little, before he realised Sirius was trying to wind him up. Florence, who didn't know Lily so well, exchanged a small smile with her while the two boys mock-fought with each other.

Ducking to avoid a rather unguided punch from James, she lost her balance and fell, taking Sirius with her. He landed on top of her with an "oomph". Grinning at her from his very intimate position, he stroked the side of her cheek teasingly.

"If you wanted me, you only had to ask! Though I don't mind your methods of attention-attracting much..." He winked and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. 

Florence gave him a gentle push on his chest and he climbed off of her, aware that he could have hurt her. He _was _about twice her weight! He offered her a hand and she took it, using it to steady her as she got up. 

Lily, although smiling, ran a hand through her red hair worriedly. She punched James a little on his arm for making Florence lose her balance. Sirius, on the other hand, slapped James on the back and thanked him, much to Florence's annoyance. She scowled a little at him and he hid behind James in mock-fright. She chased him around James and Lily a couple of times before giving up the fight and leaning against his chest, laughing at their silliness.

James and Lily, in a hurry to be alone again, bode the two friends farewell, before dashing down the corridor towards a secret passageway. Florence heard Lily say: "They make a lovely couple. Why don't they get together?"

Turning back to face Sirius, she winced at the look in his eyes. He obviously never gave up. 

"Why don't we?" He asked casually, though his azure eyes focused on her intensely. "Why don't we get together?"

"Sirius..." She sighed in distress. She really liked him, but just as a friend and she knew if he carried on liking her, their friendship wouldn't take the strain. 

"It's OK, Florence. Forget I said it." Pain registered in his azure gaze before he turned away and stalked down the corridor.

She watched as he went, his overlong sable hair just brushing the collar of his robe. It really needed to be cut, she thought wildly, trying to distract herself from the pain she knew she was causing him.

"Lover's tiff?" The low, smooth words were uttered right next to her ear and she jumped.

"Severus! Don't do that!" She spun around to find him just inches away from her.

"Don't do what?" He asked lazily, a smirk on his face at the fact that he had managed to scare her.

Dazed by his closeness, she found herself hypnotised by his inky eyes. "Don't..." She'd forgotten what she was gong to say. "Oh, never mind!"

To his amusement, she shook her head a little before walking after Sirius, down the corridor. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Leaning across the seat, he took her in his arms and kissed her, unhurriedly. His hands moved under her robe and the coldness of them shocked her into moving closer. She sat on his lap, one hand caressing his chest and another tangled in his hair dragging him closer. He groaned her name and stroked his hand up and down her back, his other hand coming to rest on the curve of her hip.

"Florence..." 

"Mmmm... Severus!" She moaned in delight.

"Excuse me?!" 

She was being shaken and, groaning at the disturbance, she opened her eyes. "Sev... Sirius?! What are you doing in my... oh!" Florence looked around and realised she'd drifted off... in the middle of the library! Sirius was looking at her in amazement across the table, obviously disturbed at her vocalising her sexual fantasies about his worst enemy. 

"Uuuh..." He started to speak but was lost for words. "Are you OK?" He said finally. 

"Uh, yes. I'm fine" A blush stained her face bright red and she, hearing a snort from nearby, became even more mortified. Turning to look at the next table, she saw Severus smirking at her. _Oh no!_ She covered her face with her hands. 

She swallowed loudly with an effort and got back to reading her book: 'Hogwarts: A History'. No wonder she had drifted off into fantasyland – it was so boring! But did she have to have a lustful daydream when the object of it was sat at the next table? She groaned slightly and Sirius, worried that she had sunk back into euphoria, put his hand on her shoulder.

She looked up and smiled slightly at him but was shocked at the sadness in his eyes. He was obviously disappointed that she wasn't dreaming about him. It was just typical! He really liked the only girl that didn't adore him. 

"Sirius? Can you help me find this book?" Chastity Murdoch had approached from behind and Sirius, hearing her plea, stood up and smiled down at her from his towering height, his disappointment forgotten, at least for a while. 

He leaned down and, tucking a dark curl behind her ear, whispered something that made her blush and laugh. She tucked her arm in his and led him towards one of the dark corners of the room, her intention perfectly clear. Sirius turned back to Florence and shrugged, obviously not complaining. Florence grinned at his immorality before returning to her book. His seat was quickly filled by Severus. 

"Sweet dreams?" He leered lewdly at her and she kicked him under the table.

"Shut up!" She hissed, still embarrassed at her earlier behaviour. She looked over at Sirius who, after having escaped Chastity, was returning to the table. "Move, Severus! You're in Sirius' seat!" Severus glared at her before moving back to his table.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Her hair flew behind her head as she ran. It curled around her head like a halo and the fresh colour in her cheeks made her look beautiful. _What did she see in him?_

Severus stood in the shadows, watching as Florence chased after a piece of paper that had come loose in her hand due to the angry wind. She laughed as it moved every time she attempted to grab at it. A black boot clamped down on the paper and she stood still, catching her breath. She thanked the small 1st year boy who had caught it.

Severus tried hard to hide a smile as he saw her give the startled boy an impulsive hug before taking the paper and running back to the group of friends that were laughing at her antics. He saw her aim a slap at Sirius' head, who just ducked in time.

__

How could someone so full of life and friends choose to like him? He shook his head in incomprehension. He'd understand it if she liked Black, or even Potter, but him? He snarled at the thought of her liking anyone else and the 1st year paper-saver jumped back, afraid that Snape was going to throttle him. Severus glared at the small Gryffindor before returning his gaze to Florence. 

He saw her give Sirius a quick hug before he walked away and his face twisted. She'd obviously forgiven Sirius for trying to kill him! 

Florence waved to the rest of her friends before turning away and walking towards the shadows, where she knew Severus would be standing. She seemed to have grown an in-built sensor where he was concerned!

"You know, stalking is a crime" She mocked the almost totally hidden figure and smiled as she heard him reply:

"Yes, but watching isn't" He emerged from the shadows. 

"It depends what you're watching!" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively at him and he smirked at her.

"What would you know about that...?" He enquired smoothly.

She tapped her nose playfully before taking his hand and leading him back in the shadows.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

A brightly coloured leaflet was floating in mid-air in the Ravenclaw common room. Florence grabbed at it and scanned her eyes over the print. A Leavers' Ball? That sounded fun! Taking the leaflet with her, she returned back to the girls' dormitory to find Heather. She was curling up under the covers of her four-poster bed.

Florence shook her violently, causing Heather to moan and try to shrink even more under the covers. "Heather! We're going to have a leaver's ball! We have to go down to Diagon Alley to find a dress robe!" 

"What?" Heather opened one eye and looked accusingly at Florence. "Is this important, 'cos I got a couple more hours beauty sleep to go..." She yawned.

"Yes! We're having a Leaver's Ball! Here." She brandished the leaflet under Heather's nose and the sleepy blonde slapped it away with her hand. Her stubbornness showing its true colours, Florence began to read it loudly to her uninterested friend.

__

To all Hogwarts 7th year students,

In a few short months, you will have a leaver's ball! You must 

dress smartly: Dress robes will be supplied at cheap prices by 

'Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions' and there will be 

a trip to Diagon Alley for the express purpose of buying robes, 

if necessary...

Florence stopped reading to look at her friend's reaction. Heather was sat bolt upright in bed, a look of pure excitement on her face. She normally loved clothes shopping, but this was even better! 

__

Food will be provided in the Great Hall, and there will be space for 

dancing, so make sure to bring your most hard-wearing shoes!

A. Dumbledore

Headmaster

Florence did a little jig at the last words and Heather jumped out of bed and joined her. They danced together wildly for a minute before clasping each other in a hug. 

"This is gonna be great! I wonder who's gonna ask me to go with them." Heather sat back down on the bed and mused while Florence's face became fixed. She knew that Severus would never ask her – he had his reputation as a Slytherin to think of and a Slytherin asking a Ravenclaw to a ball... She shook her head.

"I hope Sirius asks me!" Heather squealed, still in the thralls of excitement. 

Florence smiled and, sitting beside her best friend, gave her a little hug. "I hope he does too. I really do." 

Heather looked over at her slightly subdued companion and, through years of practice, knew exactly what she was thinking about: Severus. In a gesture of comfort, she dragged Florence into her arms for a big hug.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus stared down at the colourful leaflet in his hand and frowned. 

"You thinking of going, Snape? I'm sure Circe and Clytie would happily give you more than you bargained for if you went with them!" Mulciber insinuated obscenely, disturbing Severus' thoughts.

Severus looked up and smirked a little at him before returning his gaze to the leaflet.

"Come on, Snape. As far as I know, you haven't had any for weeks! What's wrong with you? You going through a soft patch?" Mulciber laughed nastily and wiggled his little finger to the amusement of the other Slytherins stood around him.

"No." Snape's face grew hard and his eyes blackened. "If I wanted to go out with a couple of sluts, I would!" 

Mulciber backed off a little. "Woah! Watch out, there. There's nothing to get all riled up about. You got a strumpet behind the scenes? I do believe Snapie's been holding out on us!"

"Not really."

"You got that Ravenclaw bitch to put out?" Travers laughed lecherously. "Maybe we all could have a go! What do you think, boys? How about a little fun after the ball?"

Snape, growing more and more angry, finally snapped and grabbed Travers by his robe collar, slamming him up against a wall. "Don't you ever say anything like that again!" He snarled and felt satisfaction from seeing the pain and fear in the other boy's eyes.

Mulciber grabbed Snape's collar, hauling him back, and the other Slytherins went to Travers. Like hyenas, they always looked after their own.

"What do you think you're doing, Snape?" Mulciber hissed in his ear. "I think that was rather uncalled for, don't you? You're losing your touch, I think, and it's all because of that Ravenclaw bitch. But, don't worry, we'll sort her out right good. Won't we, boys?" The other Slytherins shouted their approval. Travers moved towards Snape and Mulciber, clenching and unclenching his fist. 

"Now, Snape. I think you deserve a little punishment for hurting your _friend_, don't you think?" Mulciber laughed and another Slytherin helped keep Severus down as he struggled. "Go on, Travers!" he cried.

Snape saw Travers fist come towards him; felt intense pain when it connected with his face; and shut his eyes as the room went black.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Severus? Severus, can you hear me?" Madame Pomfrey tried to waken the injured Slytherin to no avail. "It's not too bad: only a black eye and a bump on his head when it hit the floor. He's been out for about 10 minutes now, including the time it took to get him here." She said in an undertone to Professor Dumbledore.

"How did it happen, Poppy?" Concern was visible in his normally twinkling blue eyes.

"I don't know, Albus. The Slytherin boys that brought him in were very concerned. They say that they found him on the floor like this. It's all very odd..."

"And if you believe that, then you'll believe anything." Professor Dumbledore muttered under his breath. 

"Sorry?" 

"Oh, nothing, Poppy! Nothing of interest."

Poppy Pomfrey took some magical smelling salts out of her apron pocket and carefully opened the lid of the container. She waved it under Snape's nose. Severus jumped a little before coughing. He opened his eyes.

"What's your name? Do you know where you are?"

Severus' eyes narrowed as he took in Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore's faces, both streaked with concern, leaning over the bed.

Answering the questions grudgingly, he remembered what had happened and tried to sit up. Poppy put one hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.

"No, you don't! Stay there" She said firmly. "Now, do you remember what happened?"

Severus looked down at the bedclothes and thought for a moment. He knew that, as a good Slytherin, he should never rat on his counterparts so he just shook his head.

Dumbledore sighed. "Are you sure, Severus?"

"Yes, sir." Snape answered back, resolutely.

"Is there anything you want? A drink?" Poppy bustled around the bed, tucking in any wayward sheet corners.

"Florence... can someone find Florence?" Severus grew a little panicked when he remembered what the other boys vowed to do to her. 

"Of course" There was a knowing glint in Dumbledore's eyes before he turned away. Stopping a small girl who was standing outside the infirmary, he asked her to go find Florence. "She should be in the Ravenclaw common room." Hazel Hooch ran off to do his bidding.

Severus leaned back on his pillows and sighed. 

A small knock on the door drew his attention and, looking up, he spotted Florence looking across the room at him in concern. She was perfectly well and so obviously the Slytherins hadn't got to her yet. Madame Pomfrey gestured for her to go to Snape's bedside.

"Severus? Are you alright?" She saw the bruise that circled one eye. It stood out painfully purple compared to the pale skin of his face. 

"Why wouldn't I be? I don't even know why I'm still here – it's only a bruise!" His worries diminished, he directed a scowl at Madame Pomfrey's back. 

"It could have been a lot worse, I'm sure! Plus, it looks quite painful." Florence made a face as she replayed all the scenarios that could have caused this in her head.

Severus shook his head and glared up at her.

"Now, let me have a look at that bump on your head, Severus. We'll get it sorted in a jiffy! Shut your eyes..." Madame Pomfrey had moved towards the bed and was now trying to rub something on his bruise and on the bump on his head. "There! All better! You can go now, but if you have any problems, like dizziness or headaches, you must come and see me."

Florence, looking at Severus' face knew that he would do nothing of the sort and it was only the fact that he was knocked out that caused him to be in the infirmary. He wouldn't have bothered if he'd been awake.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Can't stay away from me, eh? I knew you'd fall for my charms if I waited long enough!"

"In your dreams!" Pandora Devine shouted over her shoulder as she carried on down the corridor. She flicked her long black hair over her shoulder in a signal of dismissal.

"You wound me, heartless wench" Sirius covered his heart dramatically with both hands. "Your scorn will send me home tonight to weep into my pillow!"

"Hah!" was the answer as Pandora and her posse turned the corner.

Sirius laughed and turned back to James who slapped him on the back in approval. Remus stood there chuckling at them.

"Well done, Sirius." He grinned. "I think that's a record for making a fool of yourself – only 10 seconds!"

"You'll pay for that, Moony!" Sirius aimed a punch at Remus' head and he ducked, still chuckling.

"Hey, Sirius! Here's your next big chance to beat the record!" James interrupted them and Sirius turned round to see Florence walking down the corridor.

He dived in front of her. "Ah, Florence... light of my life!"

Florence was not really in the mood for playing games this morning. She was still stewing on who had given Severus a black eye. He wouldn't tell her, the proud git, and so she had to find out on her own. She'd give any amount of money that a Slytherin had done it; she knew Sirius wouldn't dare if he still wanted her to talk to him. "Hello, Sirius. What do _you_ want?"

"Don't be like that. You know I only have eyes for you!"

"And the rest! What is it this time? It had better be important" She focused her eyes on his face and he looked at her in concern.

"What's wrong, Florence? You're not still worrying about your injured sweetheart?" Sirius turned to grin at his pals only to see them shaking their heads at him in warning. He felt a large whack as Florence hit him with a heavy book and stalked off down the corridor.

Sirius rubbed his arm and turned back to his mates who were both laughing again. 

"I think you've beat the record with flying colours this time, Sirius!"

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Heather and Florence were bubbling with excitement as they climbed onto the Hogwarts train, reading to go to Diagon Alley. They sat down in a compartment near the back and were shortly joined by the rest of the gang: Sirius, Remus, Peter Pettigrew, James and Lily. 

Lily also looked excited by the trip and she and Heather gossiped about the latest fashions in dress robes while Florence stared out of the window at the passing landscape.

"Would you like anything off of the trolley, dears?" The plump waitress called from the doorway and Sirius and James both purchased unspeakable amounts of chocolate frogs; each of them were eager for the new cards that were hidden inside.

Remus made a hole in his wallet by buying a box of 'Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans' and nibbled on them for the rest of the train journey, occasionally complaining when he got flavours that he didn't like, such as horse radish, bogey, tripe or... coconut. Heather quickly devoured the latter to his relief.

Quickly, conversation turned to the ball and what was actually going to happen. Peter said he hoped that they served _Bertie Botts _at the meal as he bit into a mint flavour bean and James agreed that having sweets would be great – "It would give me a chance to increase my card collection!" he said to a chorus of groans. 

"I wonder what sort of entertainment there'll be. I hope it's not just dancing!" Sirius said, making a funny face at the thought. "It'd be a new way for ugly girls to get close!" 

"Well, we can definitely rely on Sirius to provide the entertainment!" Heather giggled and the rest of the group turned to her in inquiry. "He'll do it, either intentionally or accidentally, when his harem closes in for the kill!"

Everyone laughed at the bemused look on Sirius' face at the comment and Heather grinned cheekily at him before turning back to her discussion with Lily.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Walking down Diagon Alley, Severus watched as the rest of the students rushed into Gringotts to get some money out of their accounts. He fingered the tiny key in his pocket before moving towards one of the desks.

He spotted Florence chatting animatedly to Heather as a goblin lead them towards one of the doors and also spotted Mulciber and Travers watching her go. He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach as Mulciber spotted him and saluted mockingly. He had a horrible feeling he knew what they were planning.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Their pockets full of galleons, Florence and Heather walked down the street towards 'Madame Malkin's' to look at her robes. Peering through the window, they marvelled at all the beautiful colours the robes came in and a lovely blue garment that matched her eyes caught Heather's attention.

Florence, half-listening to her best friend's chatter, saw a movement in the glass's reflection. She saw Severus behind her but, turning around to greet him, only the large crowds. She briefly had time to wonder what he was up to before Heather dragged her into the shop.

"Look at this one! It would soooo suit you!" Heather held up an emerald robe and Madam Malkin appeared behind her. She was a very broad, but short, witch and she was dressed in a flamboyant turquoise. 

"Yes, it would look lovely on you, dear!" The shopkeeper said. "You must try it on!" Florence had little time to dwell on Severus' behaviour as she was hustled into one robe after another until both women were satisfied.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

They emerged a couple of hours later, Florence with the first robe she had tried one – the emerald one; and Heather with a brilliant sapphire garment.

"Oh! Is it OK if we go to Flourish and Blotts? Sirius told me about this really cool book that I should read!" Seeing the flush on Heather's face at the mention of Sirius, Florence smiled.

"Yeah, but is it OK if I sit here and wait for you?" Florence's legs were feeling tired and she gestured to a bench and put her bags down.

"Sure! See you in a minute!" Heather called as she dashed over to the shop. She hadn't been gone long when a circle of Slytherins surrounded Florence.

"Hello" A skinny, rat-like one said. "You must be Florence."

"Yes..." she looked up at the formidable sight and nodded.

"In that case, we want a word with you. Come with us." It was a statement rather than a question and a boy she recognised as Titus Travers grabbed her arm in a tight grip and dragged her with them. They led her into a dark alley at the side of one of the shops and stopped.

"What do you want?" She looked at them fiercely, her expression belying the fear she felt. After all, there were seven boys and only one of her and Heather didn't even know she was missing.

She stiffened as one of the boys touched her shoulder. 

"Don't worry, little one. We won't hurt you... much." The boy laughed nastily and the rest of them joined in. 

She backed away, but felt alarm when she felt the coldness of the wall against her back. She was trapped. She shrank as small as she could and tried to run under one of the boy's arms but her path was blocked by another.

"Where do you think you're going? You're going to spoil the party and we wouldn't want that, would we?" He rubbed his fist and she shook her head timidly, backing away again.

"Why are you doing this? What have I done?" She was almost crying but tried to hold it in. It wouldn't be good if they saw that they affected her.

They just laughed at her. She tried to raise her wand to ward them off but one of them snatched it from her. She was defenceless, at their mercy.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

A/N: There's just one more chapter to go!!! Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter as much as we enjoyed writing it! We really love to get reviews!

Starlight – Wait for the next chapter to find out if you can call her Flo. Thanks, we much appreciate the review! We were waiting for ages to get one that was not from my (Squirrel) sister!!!


	3. Not The End

Disclaimer: We don't own these characters and settings, we are just messing around them! We are just very glad that J.K. Rowling made them up!

Not the End

Severus looked up from the Potions book he was reading and looked about. _Where was Florence?_ He'd lost sight of her and dread swam in his gut. He looked around again, just in case he'd missed her but... nothing.

"Snape!" He heard someone yell his name and saw the diminutive Heather, Florence's best friend, running towards him. "Do _you_ know where Florence is?"

"What do you mean? Has she gone missing?" Snape's face paled even more.

"Yes. Have you seen...? What is it?" Heather stopped in mid-question at the alarmed look that streaked across Snape's face.

"Does anyone else know?" He grabbed Heather's shoulders and she shook her head. Severus grudgingly admitted to himself that he needed back-up help, if what he supposed had come true. "Go find Black." He ordered. Heather looked at him, aghast. She knew it must be bad if Snape wanted _his _help but, not arguing, she ran over to the Apothecary where she knew he'd be. 

Sure enough, Sirius was walking out of the small shop, his arms full of paper bags. 

"Sirius!" Heather shouted, wanting to attract his attention. 

"Ah... Heather, my dear-" 

"Not now, Sirius. Florence is in trouble! Snape told me to come and find you..." 

Sirius face had grown serious and he grabbed her arm. "Has he hurt her?" He asked, frantically

"Not Snape, no. Something else." 

"Where is he?" Sirius' blue eyes shot sparks.

"In Flourish and Blotts, but..." Sirius had already gone, dashing over to the bookshop. Heather watched him go and spared a second to admire his virile maleness before running off to find the others.

"Snape. Where is she?" Sirius demanded, staring at the face of the Slytherin he had come to hate. 

"I don't know, but I have an idea of what happened. I'll tell you as we go." Snape strode quickly out of the shop, Sirius at his heels. 

"No. Please don't!" Florence tried to fight them off with her fists to no avail as they pinned her down on the cold pavement. 

"Shut up, bitch! You're distracting me!" One of the boys slapped her face before signalling to the other boys to restrain her arms and legs. She still wriggled, trying to get free but the boy hit her again, harder this time. 

He ripped open her robes in a quick movement and she screamed a little before the boy slanted his mouth over hers, stopping her cry of distress. No one heard.

__

You're running out of time. A voice in Snape's head whispered frantically. _You're not going to make it! _Snape shook his head and growled in frustration.

Next to him, Sirius clenched his fist and punched the brick wall. His knuckles wounded and bleeding, he looked in anger at Snape.

"This is all your fault. If you hadn't..."

"Don't you think I know that?! Don't you think I've thought about it every single moment of the day? That she'd be better off with you than me?" Snape was beginning to lose control, his worry for Florence overriding any common sense that remained.

"Shut up a minute!" Sirius cocked his ear slightly; a cry penetrated the edge of his heightened hearing and he began to run towards the sound. Snape, with a moment's hesitation, followed him.

"You like that, don't you?" The Slytherin ran his hand down her chest, and she felt nauseated and violated at his touch. She whimpered softly; her mouth was stifled under his hand. 

She heard the sound of loud footsteps and felt relief course through her at the sound of a familiar voice. 

"I don't think she does, Mulciber!" Snape yelled, just as Florence lost her grip on consciousness. He looked over at her limp figure and felt fear run through his body at the sight of her pale face, stained with tear tracks.

Sirius, from behind Snape, only saw Florence's body being assaulted by Mulciber. He wasn't close enough to see her face. Knocking Severus out of the way, he ran towards Mulciber with a roar and pulled him off of her. The other boys backed off but some raised their wands. Snape, waking up from his shock, yelled "Expelliarmus!" causing all of their weapons to fly towards him. 

He pointed his wand at them all and hissed violently, "Don't you dare move. I'm not afraid to use this" The boys paled, knowing how powerful he was.

Sirius was busy beating Mulciber into a pulp in the corner but he stopped as he saw that he was unconscious. He threw the listless boy over with the others who cowered under the pure force of Sirius and Severus' combined anger. 

They all turned to look at each other and made a run for it in the other direction, Travers picking up Mulciber and carrying him off. 

Severus moved towards Florence who was lying in an awkward position on the floor. He brushed a gentle hand over her bruised face and felt sickened to the stomach when he saw her ripped robe. Muttering a spell, he sewed it up rapidly and gathered her up in his arms. 

"You're safe now." He whispered, as much for himself as for her. It was as if he needed to hear it out loud. Standing up, he lifted her with him, holding her in his arms.

Sirius looked at him, anger and fear still visible in his wild eyes. "Give her to me." He ordered but Snape shook his head, not wanting to give her up just yet.

"Give her to Sirius, Snape." Remus voice floated over to him and Snape stared unseeing at the group of people who now stood at the edge of the alley. 

Sirius reached over and plucked Florence from Severus' arms, lifting her up and walking away with her; the others were following behind. 

"Is she going to be OK?" Heather asked Sirius; her blue eyes huge in her ashen face. Sirius only shrugged in reply.

Behind them, Severus sank to the floor in stunned silence. _How could I have not seen this happening? I should have been more careful. _He shuddered when he thought of what could have happened if he'd have left it much longer. She could have died... or worse: she could have been abused and spent the rest of her life reliving the same moment, hating him for not being there.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Has Severus come yet?" Florence tried to rise from the pillows of the bed but sank back down in misery when Heather shook her head. Tears burned behind her eyes as she calculated that she'd been in the infirmary for about a week and he hadn't even come to see if she was recovering.

She rolled over to face the wall, her back towards Heather, and sighed.

"He'll come, Florence. I'm sure he's just really busy..." Heather trailed off, knowing that she was just making up excuses for him. Florence shook her head and continued to stare at the wall in silence.

Since the horrible incident had happened, she had had plenty of visitors, sympathisers and the like but all she had really wanted was to be held and comforted by Severus. Only then would she feel better.

She heard a bell ring in the distance and Heather stood up and brushed her robes down, ready to leave. "I'll come back later, OK?" She left to go to her next lesson.

Severus had stewed in the Slytherin common room, the boys' dormitories and the classrooms, not bothering to stop and have a break. He'd wallowed in pity, guilt and most of the other self-deprecating feelings that were available. But he knew at some point he'd have to face her. Face the fact that she might turn him away and reject him forever. 

He straightened up from the uncomfortable perch he was sat on outside and strode towards the medical wing.

"Do you need anything, Florence? Water? Pain Relief?" Madame Pomfrey fussed over her, but Florence just shook her head. She was resigned to another evening without Severus and really wanted to be alone to think things through. If he didn't come soon, she'd be convinced he didn't care; hadn't cared at all.

She turned back to her preferred position: facing the wall, unable to stop reliving the events over and over; Poppy Pomfrey tut-tutted at her patient's obvious depression. Unfortunately, without knowing the cause, she couldn't cure it.

Severus walked uneasily into the Infirmary and scanned his eyes over the beds until he saw Florence. She was facing away from him and was obviously unaware of his presence. Not knowing whether she was asleep or not, he caught the eye of Madame Pomfrey and she nodded at him.

He strode slowly towards the bed and hesitated when he reached the foot. "Florence?"

He saw her stiffen and prepared himself for a reproach but he didn't receive one: she just turned over and smiled at him. He relaxed immediately and perched on the side of the bed.

"Severus! I'm so glad to see you." Florence leaned over and hugged him tightly; the tears that had been contained were spilling down her cheeks.

"I wouldn't have come if I knew I had that effect on you." He smirked at her a bit and hugged her back, a little awkwardly. "Are you feeling any better?"

"I feel tons better, now that you're here." Florence looked up at him, her feelings evident in her shining green eyes.

Severus felt a substantial amount of relief flow through him that she was fine, healthy and that she didn't blame him at all. But, then again, she didn't know his part in it.

He held her close again, unwilling to let her go.

"Mr Snape? I think you'd better go now. Florence is tired and needs her rest." Madame Pomfrey chirped and Snape reluctantly ending their embrace.

He stood up. "I'll come back soon."

"Make sure you do!" Florence smiled mistily through her tears and watched him as he strolled out, his head held high.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Florence!" 

Florence turned around at the sound of someone yelling her name and saw Sirius dashing down the corridor after her. The some of the girls in the hallway practically drooled at the sight of him and Florence had to disguise a laugh in a rather loud sneeze.

"Bless you! How are you feeling today?" Sirius grinned at her, flashing his charismatic smile. 

"Oh, I'm feeling much better now, Sirius. Oh, there you are, Heather!"

The small elfish blonde almost screeched to a halt in front of Sirius and he grinned at her. She wondered briefly what would happen if she pretended to swoon – would he catch her? Heather grinned at her own romantic foolishness and vowed, for the millionth time, to stop reading those romantic novels. "Sorry I'm a bit late, had to stay behind in Herbology."

"Professor Knotgrass being a git again?" Sirius smiled down at her in understanding and she smiled radiantly at him.

"You got it! Well, at lest I don't have him again until Wednesday. Roll on the weekend!"

"Well, there're not many weekends until we leave!" Florence entered the conversation on a high note.

"Oh, and the Leaver's Ball's soon. Are you going, Sirius?"

He gave her a knowing grin and she blushed. "Yeah. Save a dance for me, OK? See ya later!" And with that, he dashed down the hall, probably to chat up some other likely victim.

Heather, blush still in place, nearly did swoon and Florence laughed at the ecstatic look on her face.

"Did you hear that? He wants me to dance with him!" Heather started doing a little overjoyed jig in the middle of the corridor, much to the astonishment of the other students.

"Come on, Heather. We've got DADA in a min and we're gonna be late!"

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

The next few weeks were filled with revision and exams for their NEWTS. Severus tried to see Florence as much as possible; he couldn't seem to keep away, although he was always careful to keep a low profile. He didn't want his fellow Slytherins to think that he was still serious about her.

He had arranged to meet her in an empty classroom after dinner to revise for their very last exam, Transfiguration. Neither of them was terrific at the subject, but neither was particularly bad at it either.

Severus looked sceptically at the cushion Florence was attempting to change into a handbag.

"I had been hoping to use it for the ball." She chewed a fingernail and looked disappointed.

"Did you want it to have tassels?"

"Of course not!" She laughed. "I didn't want it to be stuffed either!" She had to sit down as she was overcome by giggles. "It sort of defeats the object!"

Severus sat down opposite her. He couldn't help letting his face crack into a smile. He decided that he would go into Hogsmeade and buy her a bag for the ball; one without tassels _or_ stuffing. "I wanted to ask you about the ball."

Florence's heart fluttered and she bit her lip so she didn't squeal. Severus hadn't seemed the type to ask her to go, after all he hadn't bothered with Valentine's Day, so Florence had been trying not to get her hopes up. A Slytherin wouldn't go to the ball with a Ravenclaw; it just wasn't done. She managed to get her elation under control. "Severus?"

"I wanted to ask you to go with me...but..."

The pause seemed to go on for so long. Florence started subconsciously chewing her lip again. He wanted her to go with him! He was asking her to the ball! "There's a but?" She asked and anticipated his next words with such dread. What would it be?

"Travers and the others..."

__

What have they got to do with you asking me to the ball? Florence thought.

"Haven't you noticed what's happened...? I've been trying to keep this a secret since they attacked you. I don't want them to know I'm still serious about you."

Florence stared at him. The stark honesty in his eyes made her ache. _Serious about you_ The words rang in her mind.

"Standing up to them doesn't work – they think they're doing me a favour. I got knocked out for my trouble..." The memory dawned on her, everything suddenly making sense. "I don't want them to hurt you." He said with such honesty.

"I don't want them to hurt you either." Florence mumbled and slid off her chair and onto his. She wrapped her arms around him, inside his outer cloak, and nestled her face in his neck. He stroked her hair with one hand and slid the other around to rub her back, inside her robe. She snuggled herself closer. She understood what he had said, even if she didn't like it.

"If someone else asks you to go with him, I want you to accept." He said quietly.

"What?" She looked up at him in surprise.

"If you go with someone else, then it looks better, and if no one asks, then you have an excuse to go alone, but I don't want them to think we still have feelings for each other.

__

You have feelings for me? Florence couldn't drag her eyes away from his.

"They will expect me to take someone..." He held his breath as he awaited her reply.

"A 'fake-date'?" She mused. This was going to be the worst evening of her life.

"I'm asking you though, and we know the truth... I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. We only have to get through a couple more weeks..." She trailed off. They had never spoken about their lives after school finished.

"And then I can see you whenever I want." He finished for her. He touched her cheek and she nuzzled her face back into his, grinning at his words.

Severus, his hands still inside her robe, threw caution to the wind and tentatively allowed himself to sneak his hand up inside her jumper and seek out her warm flesh. She gasped, in surprise and at his cold hands. He withdrew quickly. "I'm sorry."

Florence lifted her head and looked at him. "Don't be." She whispered, closing her eyes and leaning her face closer to his to brush their lips together. He kissed her ever so slowly and a second hand joined the first to stroke her back. Florence felt her skin turn to gooseflesh and quivered, holding onto him tighter. "Mmmm..." She moaned involuntarily.

"Flo" He muttered into her mouth.

Florence pulled back from him and studied his face, trying to bring her breathing back to normal. 

"You've never called me that before." She blinked at him.

"I won't if you don't like it." He leaned forward to unite their mouths again but she put a finger on his lips. They were warm and she wanted them to be touching her.

"I don't usually... but I liked it when you said it." She took her finger away and bent forward to fall into his kiss once again, tongues fervently intertwining. "Mmmm..." She trembled as he slid a hand around the waistband of her skirt, slipping it inside to hold the top of her hip. Florence could only think about the excitement and incredible heat she could feel bursting inside her. 

He hadn't realised just how much he wanted her. He had thought about it, of course. Who wouldn't have? Locked together with her in this fiery, ardent embrace, there was no way that she could not be aware of how much he wanted her. In fact, there were many times when he had known she must be more than able to feel him against her. 

She took his hand out of her skirt and away from her hip with hers. Severus felt mortified – he'd never sought to take it further than she wanted and hated himself for pushing his luck. He wanted to be as much 'just as she wanted' as he was able. She moved his hand, not to her back or to pull him away from her completely, as he had expected, but she pressed it to her chest so that his entire palm covered her left breast.

He felt his whole body respond to the firm, soft mass of flesh beneath his hand. He gently kneaded her bosom, able to feel her pert nipple with his thumb, even through layers of fabric. He had to try and rein himself in!

A heady cocktail of sensation rushed through her as she quivered under his touch. "Mmmppmfm." She couldn't seem to keep quiet, but the only sound she was aware of was the thumping of her own heart. She moved her hand to tangle it in his smooth, if not slightly greasy, hair. She was immersed in his kiss and caress and had never before felt so weak.

Their kiss broke and he dragged in deep, hungry breaths of air.

"Severus." Florence managed to say as she fought to control her breathing and wildly beating heart. Their eyes locked and she was amazed at the open, honest longing that she saw in his, and knew that she was sending the same look back. "I... Severus..." She was breathless and couldn't find the words to say what she was experiencing.

"What?" He inquired; his voice was deep and throaty.

"I... I want you, Severus."

"What?" He was still fighting for breath and couldn't believe what he'd heard. His hand was still holding her breast and she was still all wrapped around him, on his lap. He tried to clear his head, but she was so distracting.

Florence brought her mouth to his ear. "You heard me." She whispered.

He just sat there and held her until her breathing returned to normal and he seemed to have some strength back in his limbs.

__

I love you. Florence could hear the words impatient to be said in the back of her mind... _I love you_. She wanted to say them so much; she would say them-

"We should get to our dorms – we don't want to get in any trouble." He said quietly. "It's almost 9.30."

Florence blinked at him. Had he misunderstood her meaning? Did he want her as much back? _I love you_. Those little words were louder now, but she was further from saying them, too frightened that she might not get them back.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus had decided. Miranda Downing would be perfect. She was in sixth year - so almost guaranteed to say 'yes', she was attractive enough, and it was believable that Severus might think he had a chance with her. He asked her to the ball.

The reactions from Mulciber, Travers, Dolohov and the others were as good as Severus could have hoped. They obviously felt that they had cured him and were egging him on over Miranda. She was a little prudent and they thought this excellent sport. _What a gift to send home to daddy: his young daughter, freshly plucked of her innocence! _They were almost foaming at the mouth at the thought.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

A week later, Severus managed to meet Florence for a few minutes between lessons and he dragged her into one of the disused classrooms they had discovered. She smiled at him, unable to help herself. He reached inside his robes and pulled out a box covered in shimmering emerald paper that seemed to change slightly with the direction of the light. 

He held it out to her. "I got you something."

Florence realised she was gawping and tried to shake herself out of it. "You bought me a present?" 

He inclined his head slightly and she reached out and took it hesitantly. "There is a condition though." He said, as he saw her move to take off the lid.

"What?" She asked, fingers poised over the box to relieve it of its cover.

"You cannot open it until just before the ball." He wanted her to be reminded of him before the ball, to let her know then that he was thinking about her.

"Oh," She drew her hand back and just cupped the box, staring at it with renewed intrigue. _What could it possibly be? _She looked up at him as he watched her. She couldn't resist the impulse to hug him. She wrapped her arms round his neck and looked at the box over his shoulder, wondering how she would manage to wait a whole week before opening it. He hugged her back, he'd never felt affection for someone this way before. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"James is going to murder us!" Sirius exclaimed, his eyes a little wider than usual with worry. Remus gulped. 

"Why is it so important? It was just a piece of old parchment." Florence said, genuinely confused. 

"It was a little more than that!" Remus said; his voice hushed. He was peering over Florence's head and she found it a little disconcerting. 

"Are you going to tell me why it's so important or do I have to guess?" She probed.

"Well, it was a map." Sirius seemed guarded.

"A map of what?"

"The school."

"But we're leaving in a week, surly you can get around for a week without a map!" She was quite concerned that their bearings were so bad.

"I was more than a simple map." Remus confided. "It was more of a guide. We made it with all our knowledge of Hogwarts inside." Florence knew how extensive this knowledge was. "If Filch or any of the teachers ever managed to read it they would know that we had been done more than a few things that are out of bounds." 

"You can say that again." Florence had never seen Sirius look so serious. 

"Here he comes." Remus said, looking at something over Florence's right shoulder, she turned to see who it was. She saw James heading up the corridor. 

"I'll let you give him the good news."

"Thanks a bunch." Remus groaned.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Smoothing down the emerald green robe, Florence looked in the mirror. She did a little turn and smiled at her reflection. She must admit that it did look good on her. 

She fastened her hair up with a matching green clip and added some shadow to her eyelids.

"What do you think?" Heather sauntered into the room, already ready. She looked radiant in her sapphire robe and, not for the first time, Florence envied her delicateness. 

"You look great! Wow! Give us a turn." Heather spun round to order and her blue eyes sparkled with excitement.

"How long have we got until we have to leave?" She asked impatiently.

"About half an hour." Florence grinned at the look of annoyance on her face.

"I can't wait that long!" Peering in the mirror, Heather lifted pieces of her hair, trying to arrange them neatly but to no avail. They just returned to their normal spiky position. She groaned. "Oh, well. It'll take that long to sort this mess out!"

"Not if I help!" Florence picked up her little jewellery box of hair accessories and got to work.

Heather remembered something: "Have you opened the present Snape got you? It was nice of him to get you a present, even though he asked someone else to go to the ball." The last couple of words were said with clenched teeth.

"I've already told you about that! He couldn't..."

"Yeah. I know, I know. So have you opened it yet?" Heather looked up at Florence just in time to see the blush staining her attractive features.

"No, not yet. I thought we could do it together." Florence smiled and Heather clapped her hands together in excitement: she loved presents!

Florence took a break from arranging sparkles in her friend's hair and opened the trunk next to the window, retrieving the neat, little box. She sat down on the bed beside Heather and opened the lid.

The two girls gasped. 

"Who'd have thought a greasy..." Heather changed her sentence at Florence's admonishing look. "Who'd have thought Snape had such good taste!" 

Florence reached into the box and gently picked up the emerald handbag from inside the delicate paper. She watched as the silk shone in the lamplight and inwardly sighed. It was perfect: the simple design was just what she liked and it went so well with her dress. A little note fluttered to the floor and she picked it up quickly, just in case it was something that she didn't want Heather to see, but four little words were scrawled on it:

__

To match your eyes.

"Florence? You OK there? Not keeling over in shock, I hope?" Heather grinned over at her and shook her gently. 

Florence looked up and blinked. "Uh... I'm fine."

"Come on. If we don't hurry, we're going to be late and my hair's only half done!"

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus smoothed down his typically black robe and sat down on a stool by the wall, outside the Great Hall. A couple of girls were giving him the eye but he ignored them, waiting to see Florence.

"Hi, Severus. Wanna dance later?" Circe Icelus appeared in front of him, her silvery-grey robe matching the colour of her cool eyes exactly. 

"Not with you." He replied rudely and Circe laughed her tinkly laugh.

"Oh, Severus. You are funny!"

Annoyed with her already, Severus opened his mouth to tell her curtly to go away, but caught sight of Florence coming down the corridor.

Circe followed his gaze and her face hardened. Knowing that she was unwanted, she moved gracefully away, searching for another male to dig her claws into.

Severus, his mouth still uncharacteristically open, stared at Florence in open admiration. She looked beautiful; she had a sparkle that set her apart from the rest of the girls. He moved forward, ready to intercept and ask her for a dance, forgetting about Miranda and their carefully made plans in an instant at the sight of her.

  
Florence searched for Severus and she spotted him heading towards her. She smiled at him in welcome but didn't get any returning smile. In all honesty, he looked dazed. She wondered if he'd been drinking.

Looking away from his fixed gaze, she saw Sirius heading her way, followed by Remus, Peter, James and Lily.

"Hello, Florence. You look great!" His eyes were admiring as they surveyed her from head to foot. 

"Thanks Sirius! You're looking rather dashing yourself." 

He leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear; "Guess what!" He peered about, checking if anyone was watching.

"What?" Florence was intrigued, despite being a little suspicious that this might be another flirting technique. 

"James is going to ask Lily to marry him!" He said with barely contained excitement. 

That hadn't been at all what she had expected Sirius to say. "Wow!" Florence gasped, she had no idea they were that serious. 

"His Nanna-Wright brought up the family engagement ring yesterday!" Florence was amazed by how excited Sirius seemed to be. "He's asked me to be Best Man!" That explained it. 

"Congratulations!" She said, beaming at him, then realising his expression had changed:

"Here comes your boyfriend..." Sirius said sardonically. He'd obviously got used to the idea of them being together. He didn't like it, but he'd got used to it.

Florence smiled wanly at him and turned her attention back to the approaching Severus.

Heather took her place in the conversation. "Hi Sirius!" 

"Hi..." He stopped and stared at her.

"What?" She demanded nervously as his eyes travelled over her from head to foot. "What's wrong with the robe? Isn't it suitable?"

Sirius blinked at the question as though he were waking up after a long sleep and shook his head.

"Oh, it's suitable all right," he confirmed, his voice sounding strangely husky. He cleared his throat and she felt a swift frission of heat flicker over her skin at the unspoken pleasure in his eyes. He seemed to pull himself together and bowed teasingly. "Would you care to be my date for this evening, milady?"

"Asking a bit late, aren't you?" Heather grinned cheekily before nodding and taking his outstretched hand.

Severus was walking towards Florence. She was stunning, if not looking a bit subdued, and she was holding his bag. The walk seemed like miles; he was almost there. An arm slipped around his.

"There you are." Miranda Downing beamed at him. Her black hair was loose and straight. She wore a gown that was such a dark green it was almost black, with a silver serpent necklace. He couldn't have been less impressed if he had been presented with James Potter in drag as his date.

"Here I am." He said, sounding bored.

Florence saw Miranda take Severus' arm and her heart sank into her new strappy shoes. They had discussed it at great length and she knew it was for the best for them to put on a show, but it didn't stop it being horribly unfair. 

Remus put his hand under her arm. "You doing OK?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Florence forced her face into a smile and looked around. Severus disappeared with his 'fake-date', Sirius had finally woken up and spotted Heather, James and Lily were wrapped up in each other as always and even Peter Pettigrew had a date. She turned to Remus:

"We must be the only two without a date."

"Only one thing to do then." He smiled at her and offered her his arm. Florence hitched up with him and followed the others into the Great Hall.

She heard gasps and exclamations at the decorations in the Hall, but really didn't care. She knew that she and Remus were not going to have as much fun as the others were; after all, he was still mooning over Heather and she was...

Florence caught sight of Severus leading his date onto the dance floor and her heart inexplicably took another hit. She knew that he really wanted her, but it still hurt to see him with someone else. Then, she saw him gazing at her over Miranda's shoulder. She could see the sombre expression in his eyes before he quickly averted them and knew he must be feeling the same way as she was.

"Do you want to dance, Florence?" Remus had got up and was offering her his hand. She took it without hesitation and let him lead her onto the floor.

As she spun around the room with Remus, she peered over his shoulder, looking at the other couples. She spotted Heather and Sirius dancing too, very closely, and she felt a small grin pass across her face. They were obviously getting on _very_ well! She only hoped Heather didn't get hurt...

Heather caught her eye and smiled ecstatically at her, making a thumbs-up sign with the hand that was resting on Sirius' arm. Sirius looked down at Heather and nearly caught the surreptitious hand signal, but she quickly hid it, snuggling further into his embrace. 

Florence looked up at Remus to see him staring at her friend, a sad look in his gentle brown eyes and she touched a hand to his cheek. 

"Remus? Are _you_ OK?"

He looked down at her and nodded slightly before hugging her a little closer to him. Knowing exactly how he felt, Florence tried to distract him by making funny comments about other people's dancing. They both laughed as they saw Peter Pettigrew and partner getting down to a particularly rousing piece of Muggle music by the Rolling Stones, obviously enjoying themselves.

Deciding to join them, no matter how hilarious they looked, Florence and Remus did an elaborately awful version of the twist. They probably would never see most of these people again, anyway, so it didn't matter how silly they looked!

Severus watched Florence from his position, leaning against the wall. Miranda had gone off to giggle with one of her friends that had also been invited and so he was left, finally, alone. 

He fought to hide a smile as Florence did a really dire version of the mashed-potato and Remus tried to keep up with her comical dance-routine. He wished he could have danced with her – not to do foolish moves but maybe a slow dance, where he could hold her close and tell her... tell her that he loved her. But not until she'd said that she loved him first! 

He satisfied himself with the fact that would be able to do that soon enough, when they left school, when no one could disturb them...

Sirius looked down at the blonde nymph in his arms and smiled a little. She looked absolutely amazing tonight and he was chiding himself for not noticing her earlier. _He had noticed her_, he corrected himself, but he hadn't **noticed** her. She had just been one of Florence's friends but now... she was his for the night!

His smile grew more wolfish at the thought and he gathered her closer into his embrace. She didn't complain, just muttered something that was out of his hearing range.

"What?" He murmured huskily and she looked up at him, her bright blue eyes filled with pleasure and... something else. He felt his temperature rise.

"Oh, nothing. Just thinking..." She said, a smile visible in her eyes. He stroked his hands up and down her back, revelling in the feel of the silky-smooth fabric that clothed her and the thought that the thin layer was all that was separating his hands from her flesh. 

He cleared his throat, loudly. _If you carry on thinking this way_, he reproached himself, _you won't be the only one who's feeling something..._

Heather, as if aware of his thoughts, linked her arms around his neck and moved even closer, causing him to heat up even more. _Who'd have thought one innocent dance could have this effect on me?_

Sirius leaned down and brushed a kiss on the side of her neck. He could feel the racing of her pulse and was secretly relieved – it would be embarrassing, not to mention frustrating, if he was acting like a dog on heat and she was just having a harmless dance, unaware of whatever he was feeling.

He moved one of his hands down to cup her hip.

Heather, feeling the movement, was ecstatic with the fact that she could make him feel this way. Who would have thought that he'd notice her at last? She copied his hand movement, but moved her hand a little lower, and rubbed her hand over his ass. She felt him jerk a little and grinned up at him cheekily. Her smile faded as she saw the pure, unadulterated hunger that was in his eyes. Feeling a sudden shyness come over her, she blushed but couldn't look away from his intense gaze. The music stopped but they didn't hear, too involved in each other.

"Hey! Lovebirds! Food's being served." Sirius heard James' voice as if from afar and he blinked. Heather started to move away, towards the tables but stopped when she heard Sirius' groan.

"Stay there. We don't want the whole of the 7th year seeing exactly what you do to me!" He growled in her ear and her blush grew fierier.

"What do you want me to do? We're not gonna stand in the middle of the floor like ninnies until you..." She stopped.

"Don't worry. If you just walk in front of me – stay close! – we'll get to the tables without undue embarrassment!"

Florence looked over at Sirius and Heather in confusion as they walked, rather strangely in her opinion, over to the table. In all honesty, Florence thought it looked like Heather was hiding something behind her back, but before she could comment, they had sat down and Professor Dumbledore was beginning his speech. She'd have to grill Heather later.

Despite the amusing anecdotes included in the old professor's talk, Florence found her attention wandering and found her eyes caught once again in Severus' direction. Despite the fact that she had talked to him a couple of hours ago, it seemed like eternity and she couldn't wait until their next interlude. Luckily, he had arranged to meet her after the dance, so she didn't have to wait too much longer!

"Hello, Classmates!" She heard James and Lily beginning their speech and turned her attention back to them, giving them the concentration that they deserved. "We hope you're having fun this evening!"

Florence scanned her eyes over the couple that stood on a raised platform in front of Professor Knotgrass who was oddly enough acting as DJ for the evening. They were being very attentive to each other and she was filled with an overwhelming happiness for them; she knew that they'd be in love with each other forever.

The speeches over, the students were invited to dance once more. This time, though, Dumbledore joined in and was trying to persuade a group of Gryffindors to do a mini conga with him. 

Florence satisfied herself with finishing her large portion of Raspberry Pavlova before returning with Remus to the dance floor to continue with their farcical jig.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

The evening came to an end with, in Severus' opinion, a rather excruciating slow dance. Having to move around the floor with someone you would wish would disappear, along with the rest of the world, hung round your neck, wasn't his idea of bliss. Still, the evening would soon be over, at least for most people. He had other plans.

Leading Miranda out of the hall by the back exit, so they wouldn't be noticed, he took a bag of galleons from out of his dress robes. She beamed at him and he scowled back, thrusting the bag of gold under her nose. 

"What's this for?" She looked furious and disgusted. 

"You will return to the dorm, letting no one see you. You will refuse to discuss the evening with your friends and you will not bother me." He said.

She looked so shocked that it occurred to him that he could probably give her the lightest tap on the shoulder and she would fall to the floor. He thought it unwise to check this assumption.

She seemed to pull herself together, a frown creasing her forehead and eyes looking confused. "What?" Her eyebrows leapt toward her hairline and Severus sighed with annoyance. 

"Please do what I have asked and I will not make your life awkward. If you get my meaning."

She seemed to consider his words and replied as only a Slytherin would; "How much is in here?" She inquired, waving the pouch of gold.

"35 galleons." He said.

She arched an eyebrow. "I'll want twice that." She stated, giving him the impression that 'no' was not an option.

"You will have that now, if I'm satisfied on Friday morning, you will get the same amount again." He wasn't going to offer up seventy galleons just like that, she would take it and run, being as devious as she was. If she had something to gain from keeping her mouth shut though, he'd have a chance of getting out of school with Florence and himself intact. 

"Deal." She said smoothly and smugly, suddenly not worrying about his obvious lack of interest in her, she could really treat herself with the evening's proceeds! She slipped the bag into her robe and glided off into the shadows, her dark robes and hair meaning that she was lost into the umbra within moments. 

Severus set off for his destination.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Florence waited behind a pillar next to the stairs by Gryffindor tower. It was a balmy night and she was glad to have bare shoulders. She looked out across the expansive entrance hall and watched the stragglers still milling around after the ball and sighed. 

"You look stunning"

She jumped, making a strangled sound of surprise.

"Be careful, we've got this far, I don't want to be found out now!" he hissed, putting an arm around her.

"Sorry." She whispered, looking at Severus admiringly, so pleased to see him.

"I have a surprise for you." He said, keeping his voice faint and low. "Come on."

She let him guide her out from behind the pillar and down the corridor. They approached the disused classroom where he had given her the gift a week before, an obnoxious voice echoed through the corridor. "What was that, my sweet?" Filch and that horrible woman. Florence shuddered.

He drew his wand. "Alohamora" He said as faintly as the spell would work. The door swung open "Quick" he ushered her inside, closing it quietly and locking it behind them just before the caretakers rounded the corner. 

Florence squinted; the room was dark except for a tiny slither of light offered by a crescent moon. There appeared to be nothing within but shadows. Severus muttered a few words that she knew were a silencing charm; he obviously didn't want Filch and Mrs Norris to find them. A few more words and the torches around the walls were lit. Florence gasped. The desks and chairs had been pushed back and there were coloured drapes hung from the dreary stonewalls. 

He walked to the back of the room and opened a tiny box on the windowsill. Soft, barely audible music filled the room and he turned back to her. He felt self-conscious and a little stupid. He had never had the inclination to do anything like this before in his life and it felt alien. 

Florence felt lost for words. He had asked to meet her afterwards but she just expected a kiss and a walk back to her dorm… nothing as romantic as this. The look on his face made her ache, he had never before looked vulnerable in all the time she had known him, almost a year. She walked to him, flung her arms around him and closing her eyes, she turned her face into his neck. 

He sighed, holding her to him, she didn't think he was an idiot. "I wanted to do this so much." He mumbled quickly, squeezing her tight. She grinned into his collar. 

"I love you." The moment she said it she felt as though she had stabbed herself. She panicked, what had she done? What if he didn't say it back? What if he didn't want her anymore? What if it scared him? 

Those two seconds felt like four years to Florence. She went hot and cold, one moment warm in his arms, the next cold as ice and wanting to run away. The panic felt like something alive in her that she couldn't control. 

"I love you, too." It felt like landing on a soft pile of down after an unbearably long fall. She was aware that she made a tiny sound in her enormous relief. 

They just stood there like that for a long time. He eventually relaxed his grip on her and pulled back so he could look at her face. A couple of strands of hair had been dislodged in the hug and her eyes shone where her emotions had welled up. She stared fixedly up at him for some time, before a smile seeped slowly across her mouth. 

He looked worried, expectant and admiring all in one. Florence didn't quite know what to do; she was captivated by his eyes and just gazed into them for what seemed like ages. She sort of wished he'd kiss her, but this was fine too; she didn't think she'd ever tire of just looking. He blinked and she blinked back subconsciously, almost in response. His face cracked into a real, genuine smile. 

He kissed her; just briefly, a light touch of lips, then pressed their noses together affectionately. He took her hands and led her forward. They danced, though they hardly moved at all, just sort of held each other loosely and she rested her head on his shoulder. 

After an age of quiet, communicating in other less obvious ways, he spoke. "Did you really mean it?"

"That I love you?" She had thought it was obvious that she had meant it. 

"What you said before that… a couple of weeks ago..." He was finding something hard to say, she lifted her head and searched his face. 

__

What did I say? She racked her brains. _A couple of weeks ago…?_ he'd met her after Charms once and she hadn't said anything much at all… they had arranged to practice for Transfiguration… _Oh,_ the night she'd known she loved him, she'd said something then and thought he'd just ignored it. Embarrassment swept over her, she blushed furiously at the memory. 

"You said you wanted-"

"I remember!" She cut him off hastily. Her mind whirled for what to say next. She had meant it when she said it and still did, but it hadn't seemed such an embarrassing thing to say then. It had just slipped out all of it's own accord. Now she felt coy and flustered and was probably as red as a beetroot. She opened her mouth to speak, not knowing what she was going to say until she spoke. "I thought, I mean… you didn't say anything… I thought…" _Could I be making more of a fool of myself? _

"You surprised me…I hadn't expected you to say that- not that I didn't want you to." He added hastily. 

"You wanted me to say that?"

"Well… I hadn't thought about it exactly like that, I mean, I wanted you to feel that way." _I should have kept my mouth shut. _Severus thought. He should have let things happen naturally, or just not been so dumb-founded when she has said it in the first place. Now he had just made them both feel awkward. The pause seemed a little too long. "I shouldn't have said anything."

"I'm glad you did."

"It worried you when I didn't respond?"

"A little." It had, although thinking about it now; he hadn't exactly hidden what she did to him. 

Florence didn't want the magic (if that was the right word) of the evening to fade, and she knew she should do something before it did. She still had her arms loosely round him, so she tightened them, stretching up on her toes to kiss him just below his ear. He hugged her back, pushing his nose into her hair. 

He wouldn't let her go, not now, not ever. He had the feeling that she was more precious than anything he had encountered ever before. The feelings he had for ranged from the innocent to the far-from-innocent. There couldn't be a better way to spend your future than trying to make this person feel as happy as he felt at that moment.

They stood there for quite a while but Florence was still left with the feeling of there being unfinished business. "Tomorrow's the last day." She whispered in his ear, not opening her eyes. He relaxed his grip on her and stepped back slightly.

"Open your eyes." Severus commanded in a low voice. She did, they fluttered slightly making her feel like a swooning damsel, which didn't help. 

He was drawn up to his full height and looking down at her. He heart leapt, along with her pulse, and she wished she could stop her cheeks flushing. Her eyes went reflexively to his. _Kiss me._ She thought, thoroughly mesmerised. 

He seemed to regard her for several moments. "What are you saying?"

Florence had to pull her thoughts back into order; she blinked a few times, finally deciding that his question made him pretty slow on the uptake. She grinned, for some inexplicable reason, finding the situation funny. "What do you think I was saying?" 

"You were either suggesting that we sleep together or stating the obvious." He said, looking a little annoyed by her amusement.

"And which do I do most often?" She said in the most serious voice she could find. 

It was his turn to grin at her. 

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Florence held the folded piece of parchment tightly in her hand. She wanted to know her NEWTs grades desperately but was still too scared to look. The shouts of joy and groans of disappointment being emitted around her were really not helping and she felt an urgent need to escape. 

Striding fast down the corridor, she ducked behind a pillar and stood quietly for a moment before unfolding the paper.

She sighed with relief as she ran her finger down the list, noting the exceptional DADA and admirable Charms and Transfigurations grades. 

"Florence? _I could have sworn she went this way_..." Heather's voice drifted along the corridor and Florence stepped out from behind the pillar to greet her friend. "There you are! You'll never guess how I did in Charms." Heather grinned jubilantly at Florence and her marks were pretty obvious.

"Excellently, Top-of-the-class... Am I warm?"

Heather hugged her best friend tightly. "I just know I can be a researcher now! How were yours?"

Florence held her paper up for Heather to see and grinned at the loud squeal that was emitted from the other girl. 

"Wow! I always knew you were a brain box but... YAY!" Heather did a little jig in the hallway and Florence joined in happily. Life was so good!

A thought struck her and her smile grew to a smirk. "So, you and Sirius were looking pretty close at the ball last night. What's going on with you two?"

Florence could have kicked herself as she saw her friend's smile fade. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing." Heather sighed.

"What do you mean?" 

"Don't worry about it. Nothing happened."

Before Florence could give her the third degree, an exuberant voice echoed along the corridor.

"There you are, ladies! I was gonna charm you with my excellent grades but you'd disappeared!" Sirius pouted ridiculously and Florence laughed at him. She would quiz Heather later, after the feast. 

"Silly! I'm guessing you did well then." 

"Of course! Did you ever doubt it?"

"You'd be surprised!"

"Oi!" Sirius aimed a playful slap at her head and she ducked, still chuckling.

Heather was being unnaturally silent and Florence was obviously not the only one who had noticed. She almost missed the brief exchange of looks between Sirius and her friend and knew something was up. She felt saddened that Heather hadn't confided in her, though.

"Heather and I did well too, if you're interested..." Florence watched as Sirius dragged his eyes away from Heather to grin, albeit weakly, at her. 

"Yeah, sure I am." He seemed to shake himself out of it. "Well done!"

He hugged a girl to each side and began to walk back with them up the hallway. "Bet James and Lily have excelled themselves again. They always do..."

Severus stared down at his Potions grade and a smirk slid across his face. Someone slapped him hard on the back and he sneered unseeingly at them before recognition set in.

"There you are, Snape. We were just looking for you..."

"What do you want, Mulciber?"

"Oh, nothing much. How are your grades?"

Snape's eyes narrowed. He didn't trust Mulciber as far as he could throw him, especially after the incident in Diagon Alley. "Fine."

"Great!" He snatched the parchment out of Snape's hand and waved it around in mid air. "Ooh! _Exceptionally_ good in Potions." Mulciber smirked. "_Well done, Mr. Snape!_" He mimicked the aged Potions Professor perfectly, which caused bursts of laughter among the other boys. 

Snape sneered at him. "Thinking of doing your own comedy sketch or will you surprise me and say that you passed your NEWTs?"

Mulciber's grin faded slightly and he gave Snape a warning look. "As a matter of fact, Snape, I did very well. My whole future is planned out from this very moment." Mulciber shared a knowing look with some of the other boys and turned back to Snape. "Care to have a stake in it?"

__

I don't bet on losers. Severus opened his mouth to say but knew that he was going too far. He should curb his anger a little or he and Florence would be history.

"Depends what it is." Snape shrugged and Mulciber, smiling victoriously, put an arm around his back and led him down the corridor.

Severus managed to escape Mulciber and his tendency to talk in riddles after about twenty minutes and he headed deep into the dungeons.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Another year gone!" Dumbledore smiled pleasantly, embracing all the pupils in one look. "Another long year like the last with triumphs and disasters, rights and wrongs; but here we all are and that's what we should be thankful for. And I suppose it's now time to award the House Cup." The headmaster raised his eyebrow almost questioningly at the murmur that seemed to echo through the crowd. He waited patiently for the noise to die down before lifting a piece of paper in front of him and adjusting his glasses.

"In fourth place..." He hesitated for effect, enjoying how each pupil hung onto his every word. "Hufflepuff with 319 points! In third place, Gryffindor with 350 points!" He heard groans from the aforementioned tables and excited murmurs from the other two houses.

"In second place... Slytherin with 432 points!" He stopped there, watching as everyone's attention was distracted by an upset Slytherin who slammed his fist on the table in disgust. Dumbledore gave him a quelling look before vocalising Ravenclaw's victory. "Which leaves, in first place, Ravenclaw with 468 points! Well done! Now let's eat!"

Florence and Heather whooped and cheered with the rest of their house as the blue and yellow flags waved up above and they laughed at the disgusted looks that were rife at the Slytherin table; even Severus was wearing one, though his eyes were smirking at her. 

Florence sat back down to pick at the large plates of food that had appeared mid-cheer and Heather joined her after a few seconds.

"Well, now the year's over and we'll be leaving this place. I'm really going to miss it." Heather wiped a tear away from her eye and turned to Florence who was making a mountain out of her mashed potato. She was gazing at it, unseeing, and Heather put her hand on her friend's shoulder making her jump.

"Huh?" She said, her dazed green eyes meeting with blue in confusion.

"Oh, Florence! You haven't listened to a word I've said!" Heather's face creased in consternation that made her friend apologise most profusely. "What's wrong with you, anyway? You've been distracted all day!"

Florence hid her startled expression before Heather realised that she was surprised. "What do you mean? There's nothing wrong with me!"

Heather's mouth tightened in annoyance. "You're not fooling me! I'm gonna wheedle it out of you, Florence Jocelyn Findal, if it's the last thing I do!" She punctuated her threat by putting a large carrot in her mouth and chomping on it determinedly. 

Florence's heart sank at the resolve in Heather's eyes and looked back down at the neglected potato. It was true, she had been fidgeting all through the feast, but it was mainly through nerves about Severus and, at the same time, impatience for the meal to be over. It seemed like an age to wait and with Heather trying to winkle the reason out of her, she knew it was going to be a long time before she could escape.

"You ate practically nothing at dinner! What _is _wrong with you, Florence? Tell me." Heather's concerned voice broke through Florence's overabundance of thoughts as they walked back to their common room and dorms. 

"What? No. Nothing's wrong." Florence prevaricated, trying to grin convincingly at her friend.

"You didn't get back until really late last night." Heather said, an underlying note of enquiry in her tone and Florence had wondered when she would bring that up.

"I know." She half-wanted to tell Heather what Severus had done, but she also wanted to keep it as a secret so only they knew. It seemed more precious that way.

"You met Snape?" Heather asked outright this time and cut to the chase; she could tell that Florence was not keen to gossip and she knew the best way to coax it out of her was to be direct.

"Yes." Florence gave her friend a look that told her not to go any further but Heather was too intrigued to stop now.

They were walking through the door into their dorm before Heather spoke again, her mind working over time. "You didn't…? You know…? You and Snape?" Heather's voice was hushed and she sounded more than a little appalled at her own thought. 

"No, Heather." Florence said firmly. 

"Then tell me what you did. Why are you keeping secrets? We've always told each other everything." Heather sounded hurt, and looked it, as she sat herself on Florence's bed. 

Almost all their things were packed; they just had a few bits to put into their trunks in the morning before they left for home on The Hogwarts Express at eleven-o-clock. Florence gave Heather a stern look, but she didn't get the hint. Heather stayed planted on her best friend's bed, determined not to move until Florence had dished the dirt. 

Florence really wanted to tell her how fantastic Severus had been, what he'd done, all the effort he must have put in… She sat down opposite her friend with her legs crossed, looking at her hands in her lap, trying to decide what to say.

She looked up at Heather who was grinning expectantly, almost on the verge of bouncing. Florence couldn't help but smile like an idiot; she loved him so much… She just wasn't sure _how much_ she wanted to tell Heather. 

"Are you going to talk or do I have to try and read your mind?" Heather prodded, rubbing her temples and making a ridiculous humming noise as though attempting to tune into Florence's brain waves. 

Florence was very glad Heather couldn't read minds. 

Heather stopped tuning and put her full attention back on Florence. "So… You met Snape, then what?" She _was_ bouncing now, much to Florence's disturbance. 

"Severus…Oh, Heather!" Florence couldn't stop herself flapping. 

"What?!" 

Florence leaned down under her bed and pulled out a tiny box, she handed it to her friend. Heather blinked a little before opening it to hear the soft music. "He… He had this whole thing planned. He must have spent ages."

Heather looked confused.

Florence took a deep breath and ploughed on, needing to tell Heather. There was nothing like sharing! Her previous wish to keep it to herself was forgotten. "He had this whole thing set up. We were nearly caught by Filch." Florence shuddered subconsciously. " Anyway… He'd transformed this whole classroom, coloured drapes and the desks all pushed back. He knew we couldn't go to the proper ball…" She trailed off as Heather sat agape. "I'd never seen anyone look so vulnerable." Florence realised that she was telling her far more than she had meant to. 

Heather's eyebrows shot skyward. "Vulnerable?" She said as though Florence had just told her that Severus owned a stuffed rabbit! 

"Yes, I don't think he's ever done anything like that before." 

"I don't think _many_ people have." Heather said, musing.

"True…" Florence sort of misted over at how happy she felt, while Heather just shook her head. "What?" Florence said defensively.

"He might not have done anything like _that_ before…" Heather trailed off, looking suddenly serious after her previous amusement. 

"What are you getting at?" 

"I can't imagine you're his first girlfriend." Heather said tentatively, as though walking on eggshells. 

"Well, I've been out with other boys." Florence said, her brow wrinkled with confusion.

Heather appealed silently to Merlin for help. "Yes. But you haven't been to bed with other boys!" She couldn't think of a better way to put it.

"Oh!" Florence suddenly felt very dense. "I'm so slow sometimes!" She groaned a little with embarrassment and took a deep breath. "No Heather, I don't think I'm his first girlfriend… or bedfellow." She shifted slightly in expectation of her friend's reaction.

"You _plan_ to sleep with him then?" Heather had that mildly appalled look back on her face again.

Florence hadn't realised what she had inadvertently let slip. "Oh…"

"What?" Heather said. She looked worried. "I didn't just uncover plans I don't want to know anything about, did I?" 

"You might have." Florence admitted, studying the very interesting pattern on her bedspread. 

"So…?" Heather couldn't help it.

"I'm sneaking out in about an hour." She said timidly, very slowly bringing her gaze up to look at Heather.

"Oh… Florence, are you sure?" Heather put her hand on her arm and gave her a gravely serious look. 

"Yes, I'm sure." Florence reassured her. Saying the words so confidently to her friend made her feel even more secure about them within herself. She smiled widely, in spite of herself and blushed bright red. 

Heather giggled at her. "Seriously, Florence, He's… I mean..."

"I love him, Heather." She said it and the words felt wonderful this time, knowing the feeling were being sent right back. 

"If you're sure, you know I won't really try and stop you, It's just my duty as best friend to make sure you know what you're doing." 

Florence nodded and then quickly changed the subject to save her acute embarrassment.

"So, now _I've_ spilt the beans, you'd better tell me what happened with you and Sirius!" She smiled victoriously at her friend's horrified face.

"Uh... what do you mean?" Heather said weakly, trying to hide her agitation.

"HA! Can't fob me off with that!"

"Me...and Sirius? Whatever gave you that...?" Heather saw the amusement in her friend's eyes and knew that particular track wouldn't persuade her to give it up. "Nothing happened!" She tried to grin convincingly but only succeeded in looking like she'd swallowed a large sour lemon.

Florence raised a sardonic eyebrow and Heather's fake smile slid off her face quicker than it had appeared. She got off the bed where they were both sitting and turned away, staring at the wall. "Don't make me tell you, Florence. Please don't make me tell."

Florence got up, concerned at her friend's reaction and, standing behind her, turned Heather around to look at her face. Tears were welling up in her eyes and Florence pulled her into a hug.

"I hate when things hurt you and this is obviously hurting you. Tell me and I'll try and find a way to make it better. Come on, Heath."

Heather sighed and lifted her head slightly. "Alright." She gave in, knowing that it would all come out eventually.

Florence let go and sat on the side of the bed, watching as Heather paced a trench in the middle of the room.

"Well, you know me and Sirius..." His name was said on a gulp and she paused, hiding the tears. She started again. "At the ball, me and Sirius were getting on really well."

Florence nodded, unsure where the story was going.

"And you know we were dancing and then we sat down for the speeches... Well, after dinner, I got up and had a dance with Edwin Hawley – he didn't have a date and he asked me and so... well, I danced with him."

"Yeah. I would have too." Florence nodded and listened intently.

"Well, when I finished the dance, Sirius had disappeared so I obviously went in search of him. And I found him..." The last word ended on a sob and Florence's face grew concerned. _What had Heather found?_

"I found him... I found him kissing Pandora Devine!" Heather dissolved into tears and racking sobs.

"Oh, love! No!" Florence rushed over to her and hugged her tightly, feeling a burst of anger on her behalf but she was still unable to believe that Sirius – harmless, charming Sirius – would do such a thing. Especially after the way he was acting last night and this morning towards Heather. He wouldn't hurt a fly, as long as it wasn't in Slytherin! But she wasn't going to confront her friend with her doubts, certainly not now.

"Don't tell Sirius I saw him." Heather managed between sobs. "I want my pride still intact. Promise me." 

Florence felt her heart sink. She had wanted to confront Sirius and make his explain the whole story to get this all sorted out. But she found herself nodding.

"I promise."

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Nine thirty came, and with it curfew. Florence felt sick with nerves. Heather didn't look too much better. Florence had on some level known Severus had slept with other people, but actually having said it to Heather made it seem all the more real and she now felt so nervous. What would he expect from her? 

"Florence, are you sure you want to do this?" Heather said for the hundredth time, her eyes big in her pale worried face.

"Yes, Heather." She said firmly, putting on her favourite dark blue cloak over her blouse and long skirt. Heather gave her a hug. "You're making me feel as though I'm off to join the army or something." Florence giggled at the thought, "Please stop it, it's making me feel really strange about it. Not to mention a little worried about you!" She added for effect, knowing it would annoy Heather. 

"There is nothing wrong with me!" She folded her arm defensively, "It's just…I don't know… It's _Snape_." She shifted from one foot to the other, nervously awaiting her friend's reply.

"I love you, you know that?" Florence said, giving her a little hug and a big grin. "See you in the morning."

"Forgive me if I don't wait up." 

Florence was gone and Heather shuddered. She did not need that thought running around in her mind all evening! There were a few girls chuckling over the end of year photo in the corner of the common room and Heather decided to join them, nothing like a good laugh to take your mind off something disturbing.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Severus waited for her, carefully hidden outside her dorm in the shadows. He heard some shuffling and knew it was probably James Potter and one of his insufferable cronies getting about under that invisibility cloak. He was making so much noise and those things cost so much that Severus decided for the millionth time that he most definitely had a lot more money than sense. 

He knew she was there before he saw her. There was dim evening light coming in in shafts through the high windows and it cast an eerie light and dark blue, smudgy shadows. He was a little way along from the door to the Ravenclaw common room and sensed a presence. Turning, he saw her dressed in a blue cloak, perfectly at one with her surroundings as she walked softly to him, smiling. 

When she reached him, she found his hand and slipped her palm into his. He took it out with his other hand, bent his arm and hitched her up with him. She grinned. 

Severus led them down a few corridors that Florence didn't even know existed. "Where are we going?" She asked, realising that she had no idea and feeling a tad silly about it.

"Have you ever read 'Hogwarts: A History'?" He asked obscurely and Florence tried to connect what he'd said to the question she asked and couldn't.

"What does that have to do with it?" 

"Tell me, have you read it?" 

"A bit, not much." She said, which was true. The book was _so_ boring and her last attempt to get past the dreadfully stodgy chapter three had resulted in thoroughly disturbing Sirius in the library. She smiled a little at the thought; it seemed a lot funnier with hindsight. 

"Well, I have… Have you ever wondered why there are so many classrooms and the castle is so big when there are only around four hundred pupils and only fifteen classrooms are used at most?" He looked down at her seriously and she stifled a giggle. What a funny time to have this conversation!

"I can't say I have." 

"Well, when Hogwarts was first built, there were a lot more Witches and Wizards. We seem to have declined in numbers since the Muggles went through their 'Industrial Revolution'." He was so serious, she couldn't believe they were going to sleep together and he was talking about the Industrial Revolution.

He led them down some steps into the dungeons that Florence had also been unaware existed. "There are rooms down here I don't think anyone knows about." He whispered. "They aren't used any more. You see, there used to be a need for many more teachers in each subject than there are now." She was still gaping at him in amazement. 

They must have walked for a good ten minutes through the dark. She would never find her way out on her own, and would have been a little frightened if he wasn't with her. Florence was subconsciously moving closer to him, both hands clutching his arm now. He stopped, drawing his wand out of his robes to unlock a door, and held it open for her waiting for her walked inside. It was furnished and the fire was lit, the torches on the walls were dim, but enough to see. She gave him a curious look. 

"I came down earlier and lit the fire so the room was aired." He shut the door, like it was normal for a man to think about airing. 

She was suddenly hit with a thought that she couldn't push away. "Severus?" 

"What?" 

"Have…have you brought other girls here?" 

Severus shook his head, looking concerned. He visibly made a choice to tell her something. "There was never any need." He said and waited for her reaction.

Florence was glad he had been open with her about having been with other girls and was substantially relieved that this wasn't where he'd had them all. She didn't think she could bear that. 

Severus looked like was waiting for something and so she smiled at him, holding her arms out in invitation and not really having a clue what she was doing. He stepped into them, sliding a hand down her spine to press her to him, and bowing his head for a kiss. She felt herself respond and moaned. She wasn't sure if it was because she knew there was more to follow, but this just seemed about a thousand times more thrilling than ever before. 

He could feel that stirring within him and pulled back before he got too excited. "Come on." He commanded, taking her hand and leading her. 

Florence just followed, unable to think of much more. There were two armchairs in the room and he motioned that she should sit in one.

"What?" She managed, too flustered to put two and two together. 

"I have no desire to become a father this evening." Severus said patiently.

"Oh." Florence felt so stupid. "I really have left everything up to you haven't I?" She realised guiltily, taking in the small cauldron on the floor bubbling over its little magical fire. 

"I need a piece of you." He murmured, sitting opposite her and looking at her intently.

"A piece of me?"

"Yes. Hair, or something you can remove; preferably without too much pain." He said, never taking his eyes off her. "Don't worry, you don't have to drink it, just…" He searched for the right word, "...dunk it in the potion." 

Florence reached up to pull out a couple of strands of her long hair as he did the same. Taking both sets, he dipped them in the mixture. He pulled them out and disposed of them with his wand. She admired him as he concentrated, smiling to herself. A couple of minutes later, he took the cauldron off the heat and put out the magical fire. He ladled the correct amount into a goblet and handed it to her. 

"It'll be hot, so go careful to start with. We drink in turn." She took cautious sips and then handed it to Severus. It tasted lovely. She was surprised; usually anything that came out of a cauldron tasted of old socks or things Florence had no desire to think about. 

As he handed the goblet back to her, their eyes met. They stayed locked until, several minutes later, the cup was drained. He set it down on the floor and took her hands with his. Standing up, he pulled her up with him. 

A sudden wave of uncertainty came over him. He'd never been uneasy about sex before, but all of a sudden this seemed to matter. It seemed to matter that he didn't hurt her or disappoint her, it was very important that she still wanted him tomorrow. 

Florence took his hand and brought it us to her chest, pressing it above her breasts, so he could feel the pounding of her heart. She was positively trembling with excitement and nerves. To her surprise, he did the same, using his free hand to bring hers up to his chest. She could feel his heartbeat, thudding against his torso and felt a bit better knowing he was nervous too.

"Florence..." She looked into his eyes, afraid he was going to mention something about her inexperience. "Are you sure you want to do this? I mean, after Diagon Alley..." he sighed and looked at her intently. Her eyes clouded with relief and she smiled. She had never felt surer of anything in her life.

In answer to his question, she wrapped her arms around his neck and stood on tiptoes, kissing him gently on the mouth. She felt a momentary hesitation before his arms tightened around her and she leant in closer, eager for his touch.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

"Ssshhh!" Severus placed a long finger on his lips and Florence smiled at him.

They were nearing the exit of the dungeons and had to be careful that they didn't get caught. He gestured for her to go forwards and climb the stairs in front of him and she ascended them gingerly, trying not to make a noise. She was concentrating so hard that she missed the trick-step halfway up.

"Oh!" She waved her hands about, knowing she was going to fall but Severus grasped her around the waist, making sure she kept her balance.

Florence gripped his shoulders and looked into his eyes thankfully. He was smirking down at her but his mocking expression faded. 

The last few hours were still at the forefront of their memories and their close proximity seemed to bring them back to life so the air was almost sparking around them.

Severus cleared his throat and dragged his eyes away from hers before he lost his awareness of their surroundings. "Are you alright?"

Florence blushed and nodded, letting go of his shoulders and ascending the stairs again, this time more aware of where she trod.

~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~8~

Walking onto her platform at the Hogsmeade Station, Florence felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She didn't want to go; she wanted to stay with him. She'd risk his sister, climb mountains, defeat dragons, just as long as she wouldn't have to leave him.

As if he knew what she was thinking, Severus stopped her and drew her into a close hug. "Don't worry, Flo. It'll turn out alright." He whispered and kissed her gently.

"I know... it's just..." She looked down at her cloak, fiddling with the sleeve.

He leaned down and pressed his nose to hers, guaranteeing that she would look into his eyes.

"I'll see you in a couple of days. I promise." A piece of hair fell across his face and he brushed it away impatiently. 

"I'm gonna miss you."

"It's only a couple of days." He smirked at her and she smiled back up at him. "It's not as if we're not going to see each other for years!"

A piercing whistle bored through the air and their smiles faded as they realised it was time for her to leave. Not wanting a painful goodbye, Florence smiled weakly at him and turned to go but he stopped her, putting his hand on her arm.

"I don't want you to go." Severus murmured and she smiled at him.

"I know but I have no choice." She shrugged with more ease than she felt. "It's only a couple of days, like you said." She pressed her lips to his and ran onto the platform to where Heather was waiting before he saw her cry.

Soon all that was left for her was clouds of white steam and then green countryside as the train moved further away from Hogwarts and from Severus. 

A/N: 

The end…So you might think… 

We love you all and if you want to know how many days constitute a couple, then read our story 'Wrongs darker than death or night'.

Martha and Squirrel xxx.


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